As a historian, I confess to a certain amusement when I hear the Judeo-Christian tradition praised as the source of our concern for human rights. In fact, the great religious ages were notable for their indifference to human rights in the contemporary sense. They were notorious not only for acquiescence in poverty, inequality, exploitation and oppression but for enthusiastic justifications of slavery, persecution, abandonment of small children, torture, genocide.

Some people must dream broadly and guilelessly, if only to balance those who never dream at all.

The historian, like everyone else, is forever trapped in the egocentric predicament, and 'presentism' is his original sin.