tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552616.post616761109493266935..comments2023-10-11T07:06:43.878-04:00Comments on Puntocracy: Roman Parallels to AmericaRoycehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06512845138486873008noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552616.post-74173082753007237922009-09-01T12:51:43.762-04:002009-09-01T12:51:43.762-04:00I posted a lengthy response on the blog itself. Ro...I posted a lengthy response on the blog itself. RoyceRoycehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06512845138486873008noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552616.post-74485303086752334472009-08-27T19:39:04.729-04:002009-08-27T19:39:04.729-04:00The previous comment was written by me, not Ira. A...The previous comment was written by me, not Ira. After publishing the comment I noticed that I accidentally used his account.<br /><br />Susanna KrizoChristian Chefs Internationalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06852711702151207098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552616.post-45131313038436528982009-08-27T19:36:53.100-04:002009-08-27T19:36:53.100-04:00The article would have been insightful had it not ...The article would have been insightful had it not left out the most crucial comparison between Rome and America: slavery and the manner in which the land was acquired. Just as in ancient Rome, a few landowners became wealthy by acquiring the land for very little and by using slaves to gain immeasurable profits. These landowners owned most of the wealth of Rome, just as under 10 % own 90 % of American wealth, and due to large amount of slaves the lower classes were unable to find work, making free bread and circus a necessity. The underclass is growing in today's America, not because they do not want to change, but because education, decent housing, and health care are mostly our of their reach, causing a cycle of poverty and misery. Perhaps we need another Great Depression to awaken us to the fact that the 25 years of financial irresponsibility was not caused by the poor or the congress, but by the common ailment called greed. Or perhaps we should go back to the 19th Century when labor laws did not exist and when 4-year-old children worked 16 hours a day in sweatshops. People do not want to see the connection between their own greed and the Great Recession for the prospect of one day having more money than the neighbor is the driving force behind much of American morals and politics. <br />What is so surprising in America is that the people pride themselves in their right to choose their own representatives, yet they despise them and distrust them. One has to only look at the attempted health care reform to see this paradox. Most Americans are convinced the government would do a terrible job, yet no one seems to ask why it is the government which must always bail out Wall Street which should using the same logic do a fantastic job. Just as in Rome, a small number of wealthy Americans resist change and have been able to convince the majority that change would go against the moral fiber of their society, while in reality the rich get richer and the poor poorer. Edith Hamilton concluded that Rome did not fall because it lost its power - Rome fell because it did not share its wealth with all of its inhabitants, for where wealth becomes concentrated into the hands of few, corruption follows inevitably and destroys the people.Christian Chefs Internationalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06852711702151207098noreply@blogger.com