Ursus

Have a good one.

That felt like a Monty Python skit. Cool.

Alas, I have neither a good singing voice nor a sexy midriff. I am but a humble songwriter.

"That's My Dictatorship" Power power Tyranny Everybody's talking all this stuff about me Now now why don't they just let me rule Oh oh oh i don't need permission Make my own decisions oh That's my dictatorship They say It's hubris I really don't care That's my prerogative They say I'm kingly But I don't give a damn Bein' Rex is how I live Some ask me questions Why am I so real But they don't understand me I really don't know the deal About a Caesar trying hard to make it right Not long ago before I win this fight sing Everybody's talking all this stuff about me Why don't they just let me rule (Tell me why) I don't need permission Make my own decisions oh That's my dictatorship (It's my dictatorship) It's my dictatorship It's the way that I wanna live (It's my dictatorship) I can do just what I feel (It's my dictatorship) No one can tell me what to do (It's my dictatorship) Cause what I'm doin' I'm doin' for me ah Don't get me wrong I'm really not king Monarchy is not my thing And this apotheosis Really gets me down I see nothin wrong with Ruling solo Consul sing Everybody's talking all this stuff about me (yeah) Why don't they just let me rule (Tell me why) I don't need permission (i don't need) Make my own decisions (my own decisions) That's my dictatorship (It's my dictatorship-2x) I can do what I wanna do (It's my dictatorship) Truly live my life (It's my dictatorship) I'm doing it just for me (It's my dictatorship) Tell me, tell me Why can't I rule all Rome (rule all Rome) Without all of the things that people say (oooh) yo Antony, kick it like this I can do what I wanna do Me and you Together, together, together... Everybody's talking all this stuff about me (everybody's talking) Why don't they just let me rule (why) (Why don't they just let me rule) I don't need permission (i don't need permission from nobody Make my own decisions That's my dictatorship

"Brutus One More Time" Oh Brutus, Brutus Oh Brutus, Brutus Oh Brutus, Brutus How were we supposed to know That something wasn't right here Oh Brutus, Brutus We shouldn't have let him go And now he's lord of Gaul, yeah Show me, how you want it to be Oh Brutus, Brutus 'Cause I need to know now what you've got [CHORUS:] His Tyranny is killing me I must confess, he needs to bleed When he is dead all Rome will breathe free Come on, Brutus Let's stab Caesar one more time Oh Brutus, Brutus The reason I breathe is Rome He has got you blinded Oh Brutus, Brutus There's nothing that he wouldn't do In Gaul is where he planned it Show me, how you want it to be Tell me Brutus 'Cause I need to know now what you've got [Repeat CHORUS] Oh Brutus, Brutus Oh Brutus, Brutus Ah, yeah, yeah Oh Brutus, Brutus How were we supposed to know Oh noble Brutus We shouldn't have let him go I must confess, that his tyranny Is killing Rome now Don't you know I still believe That you will be here Gods give us a sign Let's stab Caesar one more time [Repeat CHORUS] I must confess that his tyranny Is killing Rome now Don't you know I still believe That you will be here Gods give us a sign Let's stab Caesar one more time

While it's over 20 years old, Garnsey and Saller's The Roman Empire make a good case that Romanization decreased the further one traveled from the Mediterranean core. If look at economic development and patterns of local recruitment into the Equestrian and Senatorial orders, northern Gaul and Britain lag behind Italy, Africa, southern Gaul and Spain. To answer your question, I think northern Gaul was Romanized enough to retain its Romanitas after barbarian conquest (unlike Britain), but otherwise it was a peripheral part of the empire in cultural terms.

Looks good! I hope you washed it down with some beer!

Good review, Klingan. Though from what you wrote, I don't think the book would appeal to me.

A fair assessment. Can't speak for all cultural polytheisms, but Greco-Roman polytheism didn't concern itself greatly with ethics. Comparing the civic cults of the Greeks and the Romans with the revealed religions of Monotheism is like comparing apples and oranges.

http://www.comcast.net/video/texting-teen-...ast/1182191015/ Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!! O, sweet justice. I can't stand people who are so engrossed in their cell phone they have no clue.

I'm afraid my own interest in Rome isn't the all consuming passion it used to be. Though I still go with "culture and daily life" when I bother.

http://www.unrv.com/book-review/review.php You can catch up on all the book reviews you missed. Happy reading!

You're not alone. I find many things in the Greco-Roman legacy inspiring, but I am afraid the moral musings of the philosophers are not among them. My reaction ranges from bored indifference to hostility. Do I consider it important? Certainly. Greco-Roman religion by its very nature does not impose a long list of rules on its adherents (unlike some religions), which meant that ethical and cosmological speculation were now in the hands of lovers of wisdom rather than priests. But I appreciate more the process of inquiry developed by those philosophers rather than the actual systems they devised.

*waves*

Cool ....

My friend Sannion compiled quite a few lovely ones on here.

I rather agree with Sylla it's ridiculous to compare industrial era theories of political economy to pre-industrial societies. Pre-industrial cultures don't even have the kind of bureaucratic and economic power to impose themselves on the individual in a manner we ascribe to totalitarianism. I suppose where the mistake might come in (assuming it is an honest mistake and not outright libel from our left wing friends) is the culture of Rome. It was, by modern standards anyway, a society that glorified power, militarism, and socio-economic distinctions. Perhaps people equate that with what they regard as fascism - although a basic comparison between ancient and modern cultures would reveal the obvious differences if they bothered to make the effort.

http://www.thewest.com.au/default.aspx?Men...ontentID=150563

USA! USA! USA! USA! Ok, what are we talking about? Soccer?

The Film of the year. Looking forward to it.

As Eusebius Pamphylus would not be enrolled in the competition, it would not be a problem. Anyway, if not interested, that's fine.

I was thinking this could be an interesting contest for UNRV - write the best alternate history essay. Could be fun.

A collection of essays on various alternate histories: http://www.alternatehistory.com/ahdirectory.html

I'm sorry to hear that.

The opening paragraph was intended to be more a tongue-in-cheek teaser than a serious summary of the mythological corpus.