rome, rise and fall

A very good friend refers to a persuasive essay.

(See the comments section of the 5/14/2023 Mother Mater entry.)

The essay is written by Jens Kurt Heycke and is adapted from his book, Out of the Melting Pot, Into the Fire (Encounter Books, 288 pages, $30.99 from American Greatness).

Here are a few quotes.
 
Assimilation

“Seneca joked about trying to dress the ‘whole world in the toga’—the toga being one of the most powerful symbols of Roman-ness. Even if Seneca did not take this mission seriously, the provincial governors did.

“For example, Agricola reconfigured Britain’s cities in the Roman style, taught Latin to the locals, and encouraged them to adopt Roman dress.

“Charters from cities around the empire also manifest the effort to create miniature replicas of the Roman municipality. Still extant Roman amphitheaters from Britain to Jordan and Romance languages from Portugal to Romania attest to the tremendous success of Rome’s Romanization efforts.

“As one contemporary poet wrote: ‘Thou hast made of alien realms one fatherland . . . Thou hast made one city of the once wide world.’”
 
Asabiyah

Roman Asabiyah is defined as an ability to “create group consciousness,” “esprit de corps,” “social cohesion,” and “group feeling.”

“Beyond fostering peace Rome’s asabiyah increased property in another way: it bolstered the provision of public goods like infrastructure. Modern economic research has shown that less factionalized societies—those with a sense of shared, common identity—tend to provide for more public goods than more fractionalized societies.

“A society is much more inclined to build roads and bridges for the benefit of ‘its own kind’ rather than for the benefit of outsiders….”
 
Multiculturalism

The essay goes on to say that it was the melting pot that made the Roman Empire great and multiculturalism that led to its downfall.

https://amgreatness.com/2023/05/12/how-multiculturalism-toppled-rome/
 
The essay has evidence. Recommended.

On a personal note, I walked out of my house, looked around, and walked back in and realized that having gifted friends, like Bill, who affirm me, gives me confidence. Bill shares some of the same personality traits and reading interests as student Alexander.