Good points. I especially enjoy the attempts to claim that the fall of Greece and Rome was a direct result of their toleration of homosexuality.
This requires ignoring the fact that the heyday of the glorification of homosexual relationships in both Greece and Rome occurred during the very pinnacle of success for both cultures. A turning away from glorification of homosexuality coincided in time with the decline of the cultures. In fact, from the time of Constantine on homosexuality was severely, often capitally, punished in the Roman Empire.
I’m not, unlike some gay activists, proposing that homosexuality caused these civilizations to be great, but I think the timeline shows that homosexuality certainly didn’t cause them to fall.
The time that Rome was being Christianized is when the west fell. This was Gibbons main point, one led to the other. People that throw out the decadent charge against Rome as one of the reasons she fell then have to explain why she grew so fast when she was more decadent in terms of Christian morality. The homosexuality card is overplayed in my opinion. The new work done on the fall of Rome is leading to other conclusions. Rome was just fine in terms of culture and population, she self-destructed thru civil war played out between pretenders to the throne and Theodosius. Theodosius won and Rome lost. The Germans took over the remains.
Per post 172.
Please don’t take my clumsy wording to mean that I consider myself a gay activist, or a gay anything, FTM.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that.