Historical Contexts

For instance, certain types of events occur during times of economic change such as we are experiencing now. Usually, drastic economic change either leads to or is caused by rapid political change. An example of this would be the Roman Empire of the 3rd century between 235 ad and 285 ad, roughly between the end of the Severan dynasty and the reign of Emperor Diocletian. The Empire or Commonwealth (as the Romans called it) began a quite rapid economic decline beginning about 200 AD. The Roman currency coinage was devalued in order to prop up the economy. By 235 the economy was in a shambles.
Rome appeared weak. This attracted her enemies into aggressive actions against her thinking that the risks of war with Rome were less. The "Germans" in the West and the Parthians or Iranians in the East agressively move against the Commonwealth. Between 235 and 285 the entire Meditteranean world was a mass of war and economic chaos. The wars, for Rome, were both against foreign enemies and civil wars.
It was only through severe actions taken by the Roman government, both at home and abroad that some order was restored. But by 300AD Rome was a full-fledged Dictatorship with the Emperor wielding supreme powers. Taxes were raised to the sky. By 325 Rome a Christian theocracy. In 410 Rome was stormed, sacked and burned by maurading barbarians.
This is one example, albeit extreme I admit, of how economic decline can lead to political changes in the world. However, the real root of Rome's economic decline was political in that the government mismanaged the economy beginning around 180 with the death of Marcus Aurelius and the ascension of his corrupt, incompetent son Commodus.
So we might say that the rotts of the decline were political afterall, not economic.
More soon.....
Hope all is well, John.

History

I often hear, especially from younger people that history "does not predict the future" and so it is meaningless
It is true. History does not predict specific events. History ,when carefully studied, shows the contexts within which certain events occur.
More on this later. Too exhausted.
John.