Mary Beard: why ancient Rome matters to the modern world

The Guardian ^ | October 2 , 2015 | Mary Beard

[Paddyboy]

Romans like Gaius Marius and Julius Caesar knew exactly how to handle barbarian invasions. Marius organized a peoples army and annihilated the Germanic hordes and Caesar just went to Gaul and committed a genocide of about 2 million people.

[Cincinatus]

Roman conquest undoubtedly was vicious. Caesar’s conquest of Gaul has not unfairly been compared to genocide, and was criticised by some Romans at the time in those terms. One of Caesar’s political rivals even suggested that he should be put on trial for war crimes, with the jury made up of the tribesmen he had conquered. But Rome expanded into a world not of communities living at peace with one another, but one of endemic violence, rival power bases backed up by military force (there was not really any alternative backing) and mini empires. Most of Rome’s enemies were as militaristic as the Romans, and, in our terms, as sadistic.

After expending 4500 words carefully explaining why we are NOT like the Romans and do not live in their world, Mary Beard proves exactly the opposite.

It's a cruel world, filled with evil and few stand for good. We do. And they hate us for it.

[panzerkamphwageneinz]

“If one is Jewish, and therefore does not believe in the Deity known as Jesus, BC and AD have no meaning, especially AD, as Jesus is not our lord, therefore BCE and CE - Before the common era and common era.

If one is Jewish you can use the Jewish calendar and I will not take offense. Just because you don’t accept Jesus as Lord, doesn’t mean you have to disregard the scientific dating of before and after his death.

It’s a moment in historical time that is a benchmark of Western Civilization. It’s not proselytizing

[Daveinyork]

Those of us who do not accept that Jesus is our Lord will not be acknowledging that he is by using the term “year of our lord” to make date references in the commonly used calendar, and since most of our readers will not understand the Hebrew calendar we will use the commonly used calendar.

You are free to get your nose out of joint.

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from 10/08/2015. Thanks lbryce. I'm takin' over NOW. ;^)

[Pelham]

panzer may not be a Latin student and is thinking that AD means “after death” since BC is short for the English “Before Christ”.

Anno Domini, In the Year of the Lord. Starts with Christ’s birth.