After visiting the Hiroshima Peace Memorial last spring, I stood in front of the A-Bomb Dome and wondered if history education should focus more on teaching empathy rather than just dates and battles. Some argue that dwelling on atrocities breeds guilt in younger generations who had no part in them, while others say we owe it to victims to never let those events fade into abstraction. Is the primary purpose of learning history to prevent repeat mistakes, or is it acceptable that history sometimes serves national pride and identity?