all in time

  “Most of the crimes which disturb the internal peace of society are produced by the restraints which the necessary, but unequal, laws of property have imposed on the appetites of mankind, by confining to a few the possession of those objects that are coveted by many. Of all our passions and appetites, the love of power is of the most imperious and unsociable nature, since the pride of one man requires the submission of the multitude. In the tumult of civil discord, the laws of society lose their force, and their place is seldom supplied by those of humanity. The ardor of contention, the pride of victory, the despair of success, the memory of past injuries, and the fear of future dangers, all contribute to inflame the mind, and to silence the voice of pity. From such motives almost every page of history has been stained with civil blood....” (Edward Gibbon) The rise and fall of the Roman Empire

Written between 1776-1778 I believe the truth of those words cannot be refuted. History has continued to prove their veracity. The causes of the fall of the empire can be debated. Gibbons blamed it on the Christians. But what I found of interest was the fall of the Republic. The reasons for the decline and eventual death of the republic was clear enough, moral decline, civil unrest and a growing welfare state. The republic was not sustainable. It became, eventually, a dictatorship.

Gibbons points out that it is the love of power that is the true motive that leads to the destruction of society.

Today we see that playing out in our political arena instead of the coliseum. The masses still like to watch the fight, to cheer for their favorites and see their enemies destroyed. Thumbs up or thumbs down. Perhaps in all of American history has this not been so evident as today. All told there have been 15 assassination attempts on US presidents. Four of them were successful. That's over 32% of the time a president faces an attempt on his life. A little over 8% of the time they succeed. In the 500-year reign of Roman Emperors about 20% of the emperors were assassinated. And they didn't have assault rifles! But it was the quest for power, or at least the control of that power, that was being sought. A little bit of Quid pro Quo. True when those words were spoken then and remains true to this day. Even in ancient history the Senate was conspiring to somehow control that power, to retain their position. It's still going on today.

I think many can't see the trees for the proverbial forest. Consider the ancient Romans, particularity Caligula. Caligula was the first emperor to be assassinated. Why was he killed? He was killed for his financial policies, spending lavishly on his wants, needs, and draining the treasury, he lived an immoral lifestyle, many of his pleasures being the same ones some people are marching in the streets today in support of! Yes his immorality was repulsive to the masses and to the Senate. Caligula began the moral decline of the empire. One bad apple can spoil the whole barrel! As the people grew hungry, unemployed, and lacking even basic necessities civil unrest did flourish. Being a Roman citizen was very important. Initially you had to be born a Roman to be a citizen of Rome. Over times exceptions were made, different levels of citizenship were created, and that in itself created friction among the population. Does any of that sound familiar?

And the Roman empire began to expand and expand until it reached its' peak. It became so large it couldn't sustain its' citizens. The welfare state was untenable. The gap between those that had, and those that had not, was ever widening. The treasury couldn't be refilled fast enough. In short, they just couldn't afford to support that many dependents. The state is no different than the individual when it comes to that. There is a limit on the number of dependents it can support. One answer to that today is abortion. The answer is simply preventing the birth of any more dependents, by any means necessary. In modern times several nations have passed laws limiting the number of children couples are allowed to have. China imposed fines upon those that violated the policy and made it difficult to find a job.

When people are hungry and angry, homeless and without any viable options other than turning to crime, how do you control them. How do you control people in an emergency situation? How do you control people when disaster strikes? Martial law is the answer. Those with the power to enforce that martial law will gain control. Will they relinquish that after the crisis is past? When Rome fell it was simply carved up among those with the means and power to control their areas. Will each state in the United States become its' own little nation, much like Europe is divided up. You know you could fit thirty, yes thirty European nations into the boundaries of the continental United States. And you still have some room left over.

There are literally thousands of people just like that standing at our southern border this very minute. Is it going to be a tenable situation when they stream across that border? Troops are there but with orders to do what? Regardless of your political leanings or affiliations, you have to understand the orders cannot be given directly. But what is the purpose of any military unit. It is the enforcement of a martial policy. How long the policy remains in effect is always the question. When is the crisis declared over? "The president explained that the troops would be sent to assist the border agents, not to enforce the law. Under federal law, active-duty troops are not allowed to directly enforce policies." Do you believe that explanation? He, Biden, went on to say that the troops were there to help get the people into the country faster. Yes, not in so many words, but that is what he said. Create a crisis, create instability and then use those "emergency" powers. The only question left to be answered is, who gets what piece of the pie? The Roman Empire lasted about 503 years although the scholars say it was really two empires the East and West for the last 81 years. East and west, north and south. Liberals and conservatives. History as it was, history as it is, and history as it will become. It's all just a matter of time.