Collecting information about past event and history has no benefit for people who live in the present. In my opinion this idea is wrong from some perspectives.
In recent years, historians have learned so many useful information about the events that happened in the past. Learning stuff and learning from past mistakes and experiences help all people around the world have a better life experience using their knowledge.
This is because they can choose the right way to do things in present moment.For instance, politics learn from strategies that had been used by individuals in the past to have better image of what decision they are making. Additionally, normal people might not get as much as direct benefits historians get from this concept but they do get an indirect effect, such as government’s knowledge to make the best decisions.
On the other hand, someone like an ordinary citizen might not fine past events interesting or get much benefits by learning about history and past problems. Although we learn stuff about past throughout school years, it does not mean that these information are going to be so valuable for in that present moment. For example, a random person on the street might not need knowledge about past unique events in his or her daily job, as much as expects do.
To conclude, the value of the information to one mostly depends on the ones role in society. A person in his or her daily life might not see history as a valuable piece of knowledge