I take it you don't like the government. An understanding of history is essential for recognising when somthing bad is about to go down. Take a look at the fall of Rome, the rule of Eva Peron in Argentina, and the holocaust. Compare them to today. Scary, huh? Without knowing any history, people repeat failures and mistakes.
History is like memory. The collective memory of the whole human race. If you fall off you bike, you remember that you were trying to drink a coke while riding, and don't repeat the mistake. If the human race elects Hitler, we remember that we were willing to sacrifice liberty for security, and don't repeat the mistake.
If you were to experiment with radium, and had not learned about Marie Curie, you could repeat her mistakes and die.