Why did my history teacher lie?

History I learned in school that I now know for a fact is a lie

The myth that Columbus discovered America: Vikings vs Indians

America was discovered in 1492 because European were starting to get curious about the outside world thanks to the renaissance and enlightenment and European of the time just generally being the first smart people ever. Columbus named the people who already lived there Indians, presumably because he was being charmingly self-deprecating. 

The truth

Here’s what we know. A bunch of Vikings set up a successful colony in Greenland that lasted for 518 years (982-1500). To put that into perspective, the white European settlement currently known as the United States will need to wait until the year 2125 to match that longevity. The Vikings spent a good portion of that time sending expeditions down south to try to settle what they called vineland- which historian now believe was the east coast of north America. After spending a couple decades sneaking ashore to raid Vineland of its ample wood pulp, the Vikings made a go od settling in North America in 1005. After landing there with livestock, supplies and between 100 and 300 settlers, they set up the first successful European American colony. For two years. And then the Native Americans kicked their ass out of the country, shooting the head Viking in the heart with an arrow.

So the recap, the Vikings discovered America. They were camping off the coast of America, And had every reason to settle America for about 500 years. Despite being the biggest badasses in European history, one tangle with the natives was enough to convince the Vikings that settling America wasn’t worth the trouble. If you think the pilgrims would have fared any better that the Vikings against an East coast chock-full of Native Americans, you ether don’t know what a Viking is or you’re placing entirely too much stock in the strategic importance of having belt buckles on your shoes.

If the Indians had been at full strength in 1640, white people might still be sneaking onto the east coast to steal wood pulp. That’s as far as Vikings got in 500 years, and they were sailing from much closer that Europe and desperately needed the resources – the two competing theories for why the Viking settlements on Greenland eventually died out are lack of resources and getting killed by natives – and, perhaps most importantly they were goddamned Vikings

So why did you history teacher tell a lie?