We are losing our sense of history. The communications revolution, with its instant messaging, snapchats and smart phones, has counterintuitively made us stupider. The information barrage is so incessant, there is no time to reflect on the past or to plot a path ahead. That is why the way forward these days usually involves a stumble. Consider the national political scene. If the current crop of candidates makes you want to vote for “None of the Above,” bear in mind there

The current accepted wisdom is that Senator Marco Rubio’s showing in the last New Hampshire debate ranked among the worst in the era of televised presidential debates (post-1960). Indeed polling numbers indicated his stature took a tumble as a result of his performance. Can he recover? History suggests while a daunting task, it is possible. Consider the five episodes that rank on the disaster scale with Rubio’s. 1. “Oops”—Governor Rick Perry in the 2012 GOP primary debates.