"Every past is worth condemning," writes the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche in an essay entitled "The Uses and Disadvantages of History for Life." In the same essay, Nietzsche claims, however, that happiness requires forgetting the past: "One who cannot leave himself behind on the threshold of the moment and forget the past, who cannot stand on a single point, like a goddess of victory, without fear or giddiness, will never know what happiness is; and, worse still, will never do anything that makes others happy."

Join the Dallas Institute to consider Nietzsche's profound commentary on "The Uses and Disadvantages of History for Life." Nietzsche scholar Dr. Shilo Brooks, President and CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center will join with Dr. Seemee Ali, Director of the Dallas Institute at SMU. 

This conversation will take place in the Perkins and Will Auditorium (the historic Old Dallas High School) in downtown Dallas at 2218 Bryan St #200, Dallas, TX 75201.

Shilo Brooks is President and CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center and Professor of Practice in the Department of Political Science at SMU. He was previously Executive Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University, where he taught in the Department of Politics. Brooks is host of The Free Press' Old School podcast and author of a forthcoming book on noble ambition from Penguin Random House. Born and raised in West Texas, Brooks received his Ph.D. in political science from Boston College and his B.A. in liberal arts from the Great Books Progrram at St. John's College. He and his wife Siobhan have one daughter — Clementine. 

This event has a registration fee of $25, with full scholarships offered to K-12 teachers.