Off Topic

Forum Monk · Post by **Forum Monk** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 4:14 pm

Minimalist wrote:
Digit wrote:Personally I'd go for proving you knew something about politics, that should thin 'em out.

That might thin out the candidates, too.

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 4:55 pm

"Rome" is back on HBO tonight. I tried to get interested in it last season, and just couldn't do it. Maybe because they started the series with Julius Caesar, which skipped juuuuust a little history.

Now it's starting to look like a soap opera.

Post by **Minimalist** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:03 pm

They went right to the exciting part.

marduk · Post by **marduk** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:08 pm

Perhaps voting should require some form of qualification other than age.

it does
apparently if you're the brother of the electee then you get the chance to discard millions of votes that you don't like the smell of to ensure that he gets in
so elected office seems to have some sway

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 5:23 pm

Minimalist wrote:They went right to the exciting part.

I always thought it was more "exciting" seeing how the Romans got to be the biggest bad asses on the block.

The founding of the city of seven hills.
The rape of the Sabine women.
The Estruscans.
The Punic Wars
Just to name a little history. JC opening up with the conquest of the Gauls was just not a big deal to me.

You would know better than me I think, how many Legions did JC take with him into Gaul? Didn't take much iirc.

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 6:14 pm

Time for the college championship football game. There's only the pros after this one.

Later

Post by **Minimalist** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 6:53 pm

Beagle wrote:
Minimalist wrote:They went right to the exciting part.
I always thought it was more "exciting" seeing how the Romans got to be the biggest bad asses on the block.

The founding of the city of seven hills.
The rape of the Sabine women.
The Estruscans.
The Punic Wars
Just to name a little history. JC opening up with the conquest of the Gauls was just not a big deal to me.

You would know better than me I think, how many Legions did JC take with him into Gaul? Didn't take much iirc.

As I recall, Caesar began with 4 and promptly recruited two more from the area known as Cisalpine Gaul. He also made extensive use of Gallic and German cavalry as auxilliaries as cavalry was not a big item for the Romans.

The first two in your list are largely mythological.....like the bible (That's for you, Arch!)

The Etruscans deserve their own series.

The Punic Wars covered nearly 120 years and would not fit well in the mini-series format.

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 12:54 am

Well, I wasn't talking about Romulus and Remus. Anyway the History channel has decided to show some history once again.

Tonight they had on a show called "The Pagans". Regarding the culture that built Stonehenge, etc. Nothing new but still good.

They theorize that Silbury Hill was a lookout or signal point for the other nearby ceremonial structures.

It played a long time ago, but I had forgotten about it. If anyone gets a chance to see it, I would.

marduk · Post by **marduk** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 2:13 am

They theorize that Silbury Hill was a lookout or signal point for the other nearby ceremonial structures.

ahahahahahahah crap

Tonight they had on a show called "The Pagans". Regarding the culture that built Stonehenge, etc.

Pagan is a derogatory word invented by the catlicks you know
in this case the pagans they are talking about existed 3000 years before the language was invented which was later used to slur them

Digit · Post by **Digit** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 3:40 am

Marduk posted.

'They theorize that Silbury Hill was a lookout or signal point for the other nearby ceremonial structures.'

It certainly seems like one Hell of a lot work to avoid lighting a signal fire for example, doesn't it?
Possible but not practicle.

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 4:29 am

Digit wrote:Marduk posted.

'They theorize that Silbury Hill was a lookout or signal point for the other nearby ceremonial structures.'

It certainly seems like one Hell of a lot work to avoid lighting a signal fire for example, doesn't it?
Possible but not practicle.

Here is the program I was talking about Digit.

http://www.history.com/shows.do?action= ... eId=186846

Digit · Post by **Digit** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:41 am

Hi Beag, yes, we got that, or that subject at least, and building that hill simply as an obsrvation platform seems a bit OTT. I can accept that the height was so that the other points were visibile for some purpose that we are unaware of, but simply for puposes of coordination seems a little unlikely I would think.
What about you?

Forum Monk · Post by **Forum Monk** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 6:46 am

Minimalist wrote:The Etruscans deserve their own series.

I agree - a very fascinating group who dominated the Italian peninsula for several hundred years. Lots of legends about their sea-farer origins, cultural influences, and eventual decline. Too bad when people think of Italian history it seems to start with Rome.

Digit · Post by **Digit** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 7:10 am

I can hazard a guess why there's no such programme over hear Beag. Modern day history teaching starts with a brief mention of Roman Britain then passes rapidly through to the 'social consequences' of WW2.
One history teacher I know of was lecturing that the most important thing about WW2 was the Jitterbug! I kid you not!
My daughter's history teacher informed her that 'Britain of course was not involved in the slave trade!'
It wasn't just Stalin who re-wrote history it seems.

Post by **Minimalist** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 9:54 am

Too bad when people think of Italian history it seems to start with Rome.

To be fair, Italian "history" does begin with Rome....the Etruscans are known only from their archaeological remains. More to the point, the Romans absorbed the Etruscans into their own culture and adopted their engineering talents as a side benefit.