Free Republic

Edward Gibbon's "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" is one of the great works of written history. It comes in six volumes and was published over 12 years starting in 1776. It covers how the Roman Empire fell from its glory over centuries, eventually crumbling to nothing. Over the weekend prominent historian Niall Ferguson, the presenter of the TV series "Civilization," has drawn an analogy between the bloodshed in Paris last Friday and what was the beginning of the end for the Roman Empire. Ferguson declares he is here "to tell you that this is exactly how civilizations...

Evangelical pastor and author John MacArthur said that the Democratic Party has “adopted the sins of Romans 1 as their platform." “And as you know,” MacArthur told his Southern California congregation on Sept. 30, “I’m not one to talk about politics as such, but I was essentially amazed that one of the historic parties here in the United States adopted the sins of Romans 1 as their platform. This is a new day in our country. Parties which used to differ on economics now differ dramatically on issues that invade the realm of God’s law and morality.” …

I am starting to feel as if I am living in a Vandal state, perhaps on the frontier near Carthage around a.d. 530, or in a beleaguered Rome in 455. Here are some updates from the rural area surrounding my farm, taken from about a 30-mile radius. In this take, I am not so much interested in chronicling the flotsam and jetsam as in fathoming whether there is some ideology that drives it. Last week an ancestral rural school near the Kings River had its large bronze bell stolen. I think it dated from 1911. I have driven by it...

McALLEN, Texas — A South Texas grand jury has indicted Vice President Dick Cheney and former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on charges related to the alleged abuse of prisoners in Willacy County's federal detention centers. The indictment criticizes Cheney's investment in the Vanguard Group, which holds interests in the private prison companies running the federal detention centers. It accuses Cheney of a conflict of interest and "at least misdemeanor assaults" on detainees by working through the prison companies. Gonzales is accused of using his position while in office to stop an investigation into abuses at the federal detention centers.

Average SAT scores at lowest since 1999 By JUSTIN POPE, AP Education Writer The class of 2007 averaged the lowest math and reading SAT scores since 1999, the College Board reported Tuesday. Last spring's high school seniors scored on average 502, out of a possible 800 points, on the critical reading section of the country's most popular college entrance exam, down from 503 for the class of 2006. Math scores fell three points from 518 to 515. The declines follow a seven-point drop last year for the first class to take a lengthened and redesigned SAT, which included higher-level math...

Responding to the call of Pope Urban II at Claremont in 1095, the Christian knights of the First Crusade set out for the Holy Land. In 1099, Jerusalem was captured. As their port in Palestine, the Crusaders settled on Acre on the Mediterranean. There they built the great castle that was overrun by Saladin in 1187, but retaken by Richard the Lion-Hearted in 1191. Acre became the capital of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the stronghold of the Crusader state, which fell to the Mameluks in a bloody siege in 1291. The Christians left behind were massacred. The ruins of...

Abstract The Kings of Rome were abolished because of the last King's immorality and tyranny. The replacing government, a Republic, balanced the powers and responsibilities between the people and the upper class. The surrounding tribes recognized the Romans' generosity: some surrendered to Rome because they would be better treated by the Romans than their existing government. As the state grew, the Romans became self-absorbed, and created enemies instead of allies. The upper class used entitlements to absorb the people's responsibilities and gained political superiority by manipulating the law and people’s elected representatives. Slave labor destroyed the peoples' need to...

Sometimes you hear a discussion or debate in which the participants seem to be getting nowhere, don't understand the subject and can't see the obvious. A prime example of this is the illegal-immigration controversy, and the folks making lots of noise are on conservative talk radio. The conversations on the subject usually revolve around two main themes: The president has sold out his conservative base, and he is ignoring national security by allowing illegal aliens to swarm over the border. Tune in to any of the far-right talk shows, and you can hear variations on these two themes just about...

MIAMI BEACH -- Luis Diaz wants breasts, and he's not talking dinner at KFC. Diaz is waiting for a Girls Gone Wild party Wednesday night at the Chesterfield Hotel on South Beach. He's waiting for women to get drunk and start stripping off their bikini tops -- just like in the Girls Gone Wild videos. Just like they did Tuesday night. "Oh, it was wild," says Diaz, 28. "You wouldn't believe it." On a humid, neon-soaked South Beach, a four-man GGW video crew is working out of a bus plastered with "GIRLS GONE WILD SPRING BREAK" along the side. Plastered...

MANGALORE: ‘‘Culture is nothing but a way of life and Bunts’ culture which is thousands of years old is losing hold owing to various reasons,’’ said Bangalore-based industrialist and litterateur D.K. Chouta in his welcome address at a seminar on ‘Role of Bunts in the changing universe’ held at A.B.Shettynagar as part of the World Bunts Convention on Saturday. Chouta cited the example of the Roman empire which was destroyed owing to the excesses committed by its citizens over a course of time. ‘‘Pursuit of wealth is the main cause for the downfall of the Bunt culture,’’ he said.New York-based...