Why Are Men Thinking About the Roman Empire So Often?
In a new TikTok trend, woman ask men how often they think about the Roman Empire. The consensus? All of the time.
How often...
- Thread starter Winnipeger
- Start date
As I mentioned, I'm operating from traditional Christian assumptions, which include the belief that the Bible is God's Word. I understand that you may not operate from this assumption, I'm just saying that I do. And IF the Bible were God's Word, then it would turn out to include (a) whatever judgements He chose to include there, and (b) whatever directives to us to communicate both His judgements and His good news that He likewise chose to include there.
So having chosen to work from this collection of writings as my starting assumption, I'm not free to share your opinion here.
But again, in this case, both Christian and modern secular morality are largely in agreement on Rome's MO.
C. and no one is adventurous enough to try stuffed dormouse.
Ha I could tell you some stories that would make you jealous then. ;PJust goth girls.
This is exactly my thoughts on the OP's post.
I thought Don Henley described it very well in Long Road Out of Eden:
Weaving down the American highway
Through the litter and the wreckage and the cultural junk
Bloated with entitlement, loaded on propaganda
And now we're driving dazed and drunk
Been down the road to Damascus,
The road to Mandalay
Met the ghost of Caesar on the Appian Way
He said, "It's hard to stop this binging, once you get a taste."
"But the road to empire is a bloody stupid waste."
Behold the bitten apple - the power of the tools
But all the knowledge in the world is of no use to fools
And it's a long road out of Eden....
I haven't read that article—(I will, and thanks for posting it)—but my wife mentioned the social media trend to me a couple months ago when we were re-watching HBO's Rome. Seems like a false narrative to me. Is it that men constantly think about Rome, or that women lack a sense of history? Certainly neither. I thought it would be interesting to see how real men respond to the question though.Why Are Men Thinking About the Roman Empire So Often?
In a new TikTok trend, woman ask men how often they think about the Roman Empire. The consensus? All of the time.time.com
I'll play along with the OP.
My answer would be B. Once in a while.
I had a period in my life when I read a bunch of books on the topic. Suetonius' Lives of The Caesars, I Claudius, Claudius the God, a biography of Julius Caesar (by an author who's name escapes me), and the Shakespeare play too. I even
At some point, following 9/11, I realized I was largely ignorant of history, due to the education system I had been subjected to. I lacked context. I started devouring history books, in addition to journal articles and newspapers. I also wanted to learn about the history of this place where I was born. Manitoba. They didn't talk about any of that stuff when I was a kid. There was latent (and blatant) racism towards the indigenous people. They were kept down. It was normalized, just like it was in ancient Rome. Just like it always has been. Is the world changing now for the better? Does the "arc of the moral universe bend toward justice"? I highly doubt it.
Viewed through a myopic lens it seems like the march of empire and carnage that led Europeans to this place where I was born, began in ancient Rome. Now we're all surrounded by concrete, and Nature has been completely subdued—raped to death in fact. Oh well. I think the Left's current preoccupation with the wrongs of the past is a misguided attempt at securing justice for the future. We should pay more attention to the present. Focussing on the past is exacerbating our differences and leading to more conflict and resentment between different classes and races of people. (IMHO, YMMV, etc.).
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It may seem this way living in a city, but only a very tiny percentage of land on Earth is actually urbanized.
True. "We're all surrounded by concrete" may be an exaggeration. But it's substantially the case. According to the World Bank, by 2050, 7 out of 10 people will live in cities, so as far as society is concerned, it's the majority experience. The trend continues to be away from the countryside.
As far as the "rape of nature" no-one lives in the ocean, but it's polluted to shit.
I have been thinking and reading about the Roman empire, but not in isolation. More as a piece within a broader study, from older civilisations, through to Greek & Persian empires, then Roman...then Euro history, and then the British empire's hey day. I find it all fascinating, and I like how it is a connected timeline.
Yes, most people live in cities, but that's an entirely different issue than "nature being completely subdued". You're just talking about overcrowding in urban areas.
The vast majority of land on Earth is not urbanized...the estimates I've seen say it's only about 1 to 3%.
PS: and as for human population in general, this map is very interesting to provide some perspective on that:
Interactive Map: The World as 1,000 People
How would all the people in the world be spread out if there were only 1,000 people on Earth? This interactive map examines the breakdown.
www.visualcapitalist.com
Yes. I'm interested in history insofar as it is informs the present. It's all connected.
Yes but the entire planet is affected by urbanization and human industry in one way or another. Just look at bird and insect populations, and ocean pollution, as I already mentioned. Again "completely subdued" may be an exaggeration, but there's a substantial truth in it. (We'll probably have to agree to disagree, as usual!
).
P.S. There's probably no one on this forum I'd rather sit down for a smoke and a Scotch with!Yes, most people live in cities, but that's an entirely different issue than "nature being completely subdued". You're just talking about overcrowding in urban areas.
The vast majority of land on Earth is not urbanized...the estimates I've seen say it's only about 1 to 3%.
PS: and as for human population in general, this map is very interesting to provide some perspective on that:
Interactive Map: The World as 1,000 People
How would all the people in the world be spread out if there were only 1,000 people on Earth? This interactive map examines the breakdown.
As a European, you know that Europe is full of Roman memories. I am fascinated by the era, its architecture, its history. Yes, B.
15 minute cities and social planning. Look it up. Also: “You will own nothing and be happy.” Look it up. The more you know…
Yes, most people live in cities, but that's an entirely different issue than "nature being completely subdued". You're just talking about overcrowding in urban areas.
The vast majority of land on Earth is not urbanized...the estimates I've seen say it's only about 1 to 3%.
PS: and as for human population in general, this map is very interesting to provide some perspective on that:
Interactive Map: The World as 1,000 People
How would all the people in the world be spread out if there were only 1,000 people on Earth? This interactive map examines the breakdown.
97% of Earth’s land area may no longer be ecologically intact
Great concept. Let's tear down Winnipeg and redesign this cluster fuck from the ground up. Oh wait...that's not happening.
Send me a letter when you get there. I’ll be living in the mountains on a few acres of land.
