There are reasons all autocrats need to erase history. Among the flood of executive orders is something called “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” In other words: erasing history he doesn’t like.  To people like him, history must fit a neat story, so says noted Yale historian David W. Blight. All dictators fear knowledge and insist on a history that helps us sleep. But in a republic, wide awake curiosity is vital.