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 OFFLINE | i'm often fascinated by the parallels between the history of rome, and america. here are but a few.
the roman republic began with the overthrow of the roman monarchy.
rome became something of a melting pot. there was a very distinctive roman culture and influence, yet they borrowed much from those incorporated into the empire.
the republic relied on a constitution, and had three branches of government (as our system was modeled on theirs).
this is from wikipedia. tell me how similar it sounds to our current state.
By the middle of the second century BC, the economic situation for the average Plebeian had declined significantly. The long military campaigns had forced citizens to leave their farms to fight, only to return to farms that had fallen into disrepair.
The landed aristocracy began buying bankrupted farms at discounted prices, creating a situation that made it impossible for the average farmer to operate his farm at a profit.
Masses of unemployed Plebeians soon began to flood into Rome, and thus into the ranks of the legislative assemblies, where their economic status usually led them to vote for the candidate who offered the most for them. A new culture of dependency was emerging, which would look to any populist leader for relief.
In 133 BC, Tiberius Gracchus was elected Plebeian Tribune, and attempted to enact a law to distribute land to Rome's landless citizens.
almost eerie, eh?
for the most part, rome was very tolerant of differing religions, so long as they didn't cause trouble.
as with america, in rome, only the wealthy were elected to high office. it takes millions of dollars today, to run a successful campaign.
romans viewed themselves as exceptional, and were strongly patriotic.
as rome expanded, so did its bureaucracy.
roman taxes gradually increased over time, to make up for squandered and wasted money. the senators turned corrupt, and were bought out (like lobbying today).
rome had a welfare system, which kind of got out of hand, costing the empire significant amounts of money.
rome began to increasingly rely on mercenaries.
rome began to privatize public services.
anyway, i think that's enough for now. thoughts?
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roman parallels
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Originally Posted by Laura Vondenhuevel:
