Ancient Governments

In April 2020, the United States will embark on what has been called "the largest peacetime mobilization in American history": the decennial population census. It is part of a tradition of counting people that goes back at least three millennia and now spans the globe. In The Sum of the People, data scientist Andrew Whitby traces the remarkable history of the census, from ancient China and the Roman Empire, through revolutionary America and Nazi-occupied Europe, to the steps of the Supreme Court.

What is it exactly that made for the greatness of Western Civilization? Why did it have its ups and downs, and where do things seem headed today? Ultimately, this two-volume series is as much a political-moral teaching as it is a presentation of the details of the West's wonderful (and sometimes tragic) historical record.

In today’s modern world, every political regime, even the most authoritarian or repressive, describes itself as democracy or a democratic people’s republic. The concept of rule by the people and on behalf of the people has come to be accepted as the norm. Very few would overtly espouse the cause of dictatorship, absolute monarchy, or oligarchy as the most desirable political system upon which to base the government of any country.

Stiamo lasciando volontariamente aperte le porte della nostra civiltà ai barbari, dimenticando le nostre radici greche e romane? O forse siamo noi i barbari, quando utilizziamo il nostro passato per giustificare il peggio della nostra civiltà? Ecco un piccolo "libro nero" sull’uso politico dell’antichità, che ci aiuta a comprendere cosa c’è di vivo e cosa c’è di morto nel nostro legame con i Greci e i Romani. L’insegnamento dei classici greci e latini è certo un antidoto efficace alla barbarie dei nostri tempi. Giusto?

How scapegoating and hysteria doomed the world's first democracy. From the chaos of a sea-battle to the fury of a lynch mob, from personal bravery to political machinations, The Day Democracy Died tells in vivid detail the tragic story of the Arginusae trials and the fall of Athens: a cautionary tale of democracy's demons which is as relevant in the age of instant news and mass media as in the volatile city-states of ancient Greece.

In this acclaimed Plato masterpiece, you travel back in time to attend an elaborate high society dinner. At this party, you meet Plato's mentor, Socrates, and the comic poet Aristophanes. During the banquet, each of these men is invited to praise Eros, the god of love and desire. You witness them deliver speeches that embody their wisdom and philosophies on love. You hear Socrates' celebrated account of Diotima, the prophetess who taught him that love is the manifestation of human goodness. Finally, you even hear from the famous Alcibiades.

In The Life of Cicero, Plutarch details the priceless contributions Cicero made to Roman society. He translated the works of Greek philosophers into Latin, gained acclaim as an orator and lawyer, and was elected to office. Politics ultimately got the better of him, however, and his life ended in assassination while in exile. Cicero’s ideas live on through his body of work, but to learn about the man himself, Plutarch’s biography is an excellent starting point.

Few mixtures are as toxic as absolute power and insanity. When nothing stands between a leader's delusion whims and seeing them carried them out, all sorts of bizarre outcomes are possible. Whatever their background, these rulers show that dynastic politics made sure that a rightful heir always got on the throne - despite that heir's mental condition - and that power can destroy a mind worse than any mental illness.

Given how bad some of Rome's emperors were, it's a testament to just how insane and reviled Caligula was that he is still remembered, nearly 2,000 years later, as the epitome of everything that could be wrong with a tyrant. The Romans had high hopes for him after he succeeded Tiberius in AD 37, and by all accounts he was a noble and just ruler during his first few months in power. But after that, he suffered a mysterious illness that apparently rendered him insane. Indeed, the list of Caligula's strange actions is long.

From the time of the ancients came a mighty warrior who conquered the known world! Never before or since has there been anyone like this man, Alexander the Great. What was his secret? How did this son of a warlord rise to such power? How was he able to lead a small army of Greeks to victory over the mightiest empire of the world?

La milenaria, compleja y convulsa historia de China, acaso uno de los procesos históricos más llamativos de todo el planeta, estudiada con precisión y detalle en un período que comprende desde las Guerras del Opio, a la lucha entre Mao Zedong y Chang Kai-Shek y la posterior proclamación del comunismo y el nacimiento de la nueva República Popular China.