Pox Romanus

I'm watching a documentary about ancient Rome. With all the injustices I've suffered on my mind, I'm skeptical about the use of this ancient civilization as a model for modern republics. Looking back on the Romans, we tend to only notice their achievements, like their great architectural works and roads. If we look more carefully at them, and at certain Americans who would emulate them, we might notice some serious faults. Slaves outnumbered the citizens in ancient Rome. Look, there's Einstein, dragging a battering ram up a ramp. And there's Shakespeare, digging a hole in the mud. Not quite as brutal as the soup lines and homeless shelters faced by today's unsupported talent, but hardly a progressive example to follow. And how about their entertainment? Who wants to get together and watch helpless prisoners being torn to pieces in the arena? What does such public sport say about their humanity? The Roman political system was corrupt. Candidates known as 'straw men' ran for public office, paid to lose, merely to present the illusion of a democratic choice to voters. Sound familiar? But the thing I hate the most about ancient Rome is their suffocating classism. This is the most unfortunate aspect that has been passed on to us: the old 'it's not what you know but who you know' dictum for social advancement. Besides being oppressive, it's highly inefficient, since it lets fools and scoundrels rise to the top on the mere strength of their social connections. For instance, it let George W. Bush win two presidential terms at the same time as it has drastically interfered with my honest success. Just as with U.S presidents, it was 'hit and miss' when it came to finding a good emperor in ancient Rome. The bad emperors, like Caligula, stood out more, but there were some good ones, too, like Vespasian, who uttered, 'Dear me! I think I'm turning into a god.' on his death bed. I like a witty emperor who can face death with a clever quip like that. Too bad their system couldn't produce such fit leaders more consistently. Had the Romans offered a little more opportunity to their slaves, maybe they'd have developed broadcasting technology, like the broadcasting technology that got Hitler elected Chancellor of Germany in 1933, or the broadcasting technology that got countless frauds 'elected' as rock stars and comedy stars with stolen songs and blogs from my Google account. They might have lasted a lot longer with such total control over the public mind - maybe even all the way to the present. As it is, modern tyrants seem content to use these tools to pick up where their ancient idols left off.
Arguments Copyright Issues Comedy Sketches Cartoons Lyrics Poems
More Statements Scripts Songs
© 2018. Statements by David Skerkowski. All rights reserved.