Past as prologue?

Myth: Ancient Rome fell because of “barbarian” invasions.

By the time these Germanic tribes descended on Rome, the latter had imploded due in part to:

1) a corrupt, delusional imperial hubris;

2) a patrician class that colluded with the emperor to subvert the republic and to pillage the economy at the expense of the many plebeians;

3) the hyper-militarization of Rome in which the fasces became an object of religious veneration, civilians relegated to supplicant roles - Rome became “a corpse in armor”;

4) the degradation of Greco-Roman principles (see below) and the ascent of the irrational and the demagogue;

5) citizens retracting from civic duty and distracted by “bread and circuses” while the carcass of the body politic was cannibalized by competing factions.

This internal disintegration left Rome prey to the “barbarians” who long resented its imperial hegemony.

We, the heirs to Rome, now confront crises somewhat analogous to Rome and some Americans believe that the “barbarians” are again at the gates, poised to destroy that inheritance. (Granted, the internet is also a “gate.”) By abandoning the civilizing principles of veritas (truth), mores (ethics), aequitas (justice) and logica (reasoning), the Late Empire Romans were the “barbarians” within the gates who caused their own demise.

John B. Hagney

Spokane