But Carnegie did, for the rest of his life. Griffin will, for the rest of his life. The distinction you're trying to draw is merely you being a prisoner of the moment.
? You can't go back in time either (though I don't mean to assume!). The moments we're dealing with are now and the future.
If your argument is, 'they did it before therefore it's a good idea or ok now', I don't know what to say to you. Perhaps you are a prisoner of the past, which prevents us from moving forward.