JoeApr 255 minPolybius and the political cycleI've been reading Polybius, 'The Histories' (or according to Penguin Classics, 'The Rise of the Roman Empire'). A second century BC Greek...
JoeSep 28, 20235 minHBO's RomeRecently I (re)watched s1 of HBO's Rome and mostly decided against writing about it. Then, for a few days at least, the online discourse...
JoeAug 18, 20235 minSparta and the helotsWhen talking about ancient Greece it's easy to make generalizations. Most of our hard evidence from that era comes from Athens, home to...
JoeApr 10, 20235 min146 BC: Rome settles all family businessIn the third and second centuries BC the powers of the Mediterranean were the Roman Republic and Carthage in the west and the Hellenistic...
JoeMar 20, 20234 minXenophon's Ten ThousandIn case you couldn't tell, I've really been into ancient Greece lately. After hearing about it a couple times in other books, I decided...
JoeJan 6, 20235 minThe legacy of classical GreeceI think most Americans know the broader definition of western civilization goes back through medieval Europe to Rome and, ultimately, to...
JoeNov 29, 20226 minThe late Bronze Age and AoEWe spent our Thanksgiving down in Arizona. Much of my family is down there, including my parents, and we split our time between the 'East...
JoeOct 22, 20204 minCannaeThe book I'm reading now was given to me by a friend, and it's called Carnage and Culture. It looks at nine battles where 'western'...