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Category: U.S. Politics

Bonus Material – On the Fall of the Roman Republic: Lessons for the American People

Bonus Material – On the Fall of the Roman Republic: Lessons for the American People

Anthem Press has just released the paperback edition of my book On the Fall of the Roman Republic: Lessons for the American People. So I thought I’d share some bonus material that touches upon a number of the themes addressed in it and reflects the format of the approach I took in the other chapters. Here is the additional lesson. Mistreatment of women is the mark of a tyrant The Roman Republic was founded in 509 BCE.  The event that…

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The Way to Unity Runs through Truth, Reparation, and Reconciliation

The Way to Unity Runs through Truth, Reparation, and Reconciliation

Since the violent storming of the Capitol January 6th, we’ve heard repeated calls for unity and peace.  While unity and peace are desirable and some making such appeals, including President Biden, are sincere, nonetheless, many calls are also coming from those who were sowing division just days before.  Louisiana Representative Steve Scalise, Minority Whip of the House Republicans, solemnly borrowed Lincoln’s words “with malice toward none” for his speech on Trump’s second impeachment.  He was speaking those words on the…

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Erasures: Memory and Death in Kentucky

Erasures: Memory and Death in Kentucky

It is important for you to know that I did not travel to Mammoth Cave National Park to meet Stephen Bishop.  I went for the same reason most visitors travel to Mammoth Cave.  I was seeking a respite from my routine; I was seeking a respite from the pandemic.  I wanted to be around some natural beauty that I had not encountered before. Mammoth Cave delivers on all those things.  The Green River snakes its way through the park surrounded…

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Lessons on Political Violence from the Roman Republic: Part III – Organized, armed gangs will tear apart a political system

Lessons on Political Violence from the Roman Republic: Part III – Organized, armed gangs will tear apart a political system

As Americans head to the polls, the threat of voter intimidation and violence is greater than at any time in recent memory.  Not since the Jim Crow South have voters and the political system faced such threats.  The potential damage this could do to our political system should not be underestimated.  Here again, the Romans provide us an ominous example. By the 50s BCE, the Roman Republic had been marred by political violence for decades, but something had inherently changed. …

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Lessons on Political Violence from the Roman Republic: Part II – Civic virtue is as important as the constitution and laws

Lessons on Political Violence from the Roman Republic: Part II – Civic virtue is as important as the constitution and laws

Civic virtue does not seem to be of much interest in 21st century America.  Perhaps for good reason.  It is hard to be civically virtuous when any attempt to be so is taken advantage of.  It’s a lamentable loss.  For in the end, civic virtue has the power to keep people together longer than institutions and documents.  We tend to rely on institutions and documents to do our heavy lifting; we treat these things as if they can police our…

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The Tyrant Goes for an Evening Stroll

The Tyrant Goes for an Evening Stroll

Who does not love an evening walk in the late spring and early summer?  The birds in the trees, a cool breeze against one’s face.  If you are fortunate to be with a loved one, you may be talking over your day or even your dreams, perhaps enjoying the silence together.  Or maybe you are a solitary walker lost in the reveries of the night.   Many of us in this time of pandemic have rediscovered the invigorating joys of an…

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First Thoughts on the Failure of an Impeachment

First Thoughts on the Failure of an Impeachment

We all learn it well from early youth on up – there are three branches of government, and through a system of checks and balances none of them are able to dominate the others.  The idea of dividing up the power in a political system and then establishing ways for the constituent parts to restrain one another has a long history.  Thus, in the Roman Republic there were the people, the senate, and the magistrates, each of which was situated…

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A Tale of Two Dictators

A Tale of Two Dictators

Greetings from the city of the Cincinnati, and as today is the anniversary of the assassination of Caligula, January 24, 41 CE, it seems appropriate to speak of dictators and tyrants.  Don’t let our moniker “The Queen City” fool you.  We’d brook th’ eternal devil to keep his state in Cincinnati as easily as a king.  We’re named after a group of Revolutionary War officers who pledged to return to public service after the war if their country needed them. …

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