You're right. In the real world, the past is prologue. For instance, despite all the British outrages of the Stamp Act, the Boston Massacre, and so on—dating from the 1760s, for goodness' sake—most colonists were still just sitting on their tail coats, eating their turnips, drinking their ale, and paying their higher taxes. In 1775! We don't have to read any further in the book to know why the revolt against the British that the dreamers and braggarts talked about didn't happen.
There are things that will never happen. There are also things that aren't happening on my schedule. Anyone who can't imagine the difference should probably get back under the desk.
You mean like Satan repenting, or something less?