I don't know about this analogy, but his conclusion is correct. Why WAS Rome so desirous of destroying Carthage?
The main reason was that they had been fighting with them for many years, and the Carthaginians had broken treaties. Hannibal kept coming after them, even bringing elephants over the Alps. It was 6 of one and half-dozen of the other, though.
Originally, the Rome-Darthage feud was over who was going to be top dog in the Mediterranean Sea. Carthage had the initial advantage in seapower, but Rome quickly established a credible navy and the struggle for supremacy was on...
the infowarrior