Review of The Final Keystone

[Ams Strong]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Final Keystone" by John Kevin Crowley.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Why do certain aspects of history keep repeating throughout time? The world wars fought in recent times have much in common with those fought thousands of years ago. What is the best way to govern a society so it doesn’t devolve into anarchy and chaos? What did a great leader of the Roman Empire and Hitler have in common? It seems we haven’t learned enough from our history. In The Final Keystone by John Kevin Crowley, the author provides some answers to the above questions by diving deep into the history of the modern world, from the Greek and Roman eras to late twentieth-century history. While great societies like these collapsed by making the wrong decisions, they got some things right that we should learn from.

I love the analogies between ancient and recent history that the author uses throughout this book. For example, the author shows how an instance of good leadership in the Roman Empire was reproduced in the United States of America: Cincinnatus from the Roman Empire had absolute power over the empire and could have made himself a dictator, but he didn’t exceed his term limit like George Washington of the United States. A bad example of leadership learned wittingly or unwittingly from history is the cycle of a revolution, dictatorship, and back to a revolution: after a successful revolution that overthrows a dictatorial government, if the new government suppresses free speech and cracks down on dissent, this invariably leads to social tension and another revolution.

I rate this book five stars out of five. It is well-edited, and the author presents compelling arguments about human history and societies. I learned much from this book and better understood our shared humanity and flaws. If we do not learn from the past and change our collective consciousness, we are doomed to the same fate as our predecessors. There is nothing negative I have to say about this book. There are no instances of sexual or violent content in this book, apart from the violent history of past wars. I recommend this book to readers of all religions.

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The Final Keystone
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