Childress

On 19-27 July 64, Rome was destroyed by a great fire: only four of its fourteen quarters remained intact. Untold thousands perished. Nero was held responsible by the Roman populace, a charge that was given substance by the emperor's subsequent urban renewal project that included the construction of his Domus Aurea- the Golden House (partially excavated). The vast palaceThis included lush artificial landscapes and a 30-meter-tall statue of himself . Suetonius and Cassius Dio claimed that the emperor played the lyre and sang in stage costume while the city burned. Nero, in turn, deflected the blame on the Christians, a proselytizing but tiny sect. The Roman historian Tacitus, who places Nero in Antium during the conflagration, was the first ancient author to mention Christ. He explains what happened: 'But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the fire was the result of an order. Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called "Chrestians" by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.' Modern historians refrain from inculpating Nero or the Christians. Given Rome's crowded narrow streets and rudimentary fire brigades, it was a disaster waiting to happen.

Christie's London has recently offered one of Napoleon's bicorne hats (above). Price: 500,000 pounds. It's said that Napoleon normally bought 4 dark green, velvet hats a year from Poupart & Cie, Paris. He detested hats off the production line assigning valets the task of breaking them in. The inner dimensions suggest that despite his short stature the Emperor had an unusually large head. The convention of the time was to wear these hats with their corners pointed forward and back, a la the Duke of Wellington. Napoleon wore his sideways allegedly to render his figure instantly identifiable on the battlefield, that style being forbidden to subalterns. Or was it a precocious example of clever branding similar to Churchill's cigar or Hitler's toothbrush mustache?

A contemporary update to Emerson's remark: 'Those who engage in virtue signaling often lack genuine virtue.'

Here's a favorite: 'The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons.' -Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson adapted this all-too-true homily from Samuel Johnson. What Dr. Johnson said to Boswell was, "If he does really think that there is no distinction between virtue and vice, why, sir, when he leaves our houses let us count our spoons." Emerson's version is actually more incisive, if not profound in its implications.

Very colorful, ME- and practical! But a quick Google-fu came up nothing. Except a reference to Wellington Children's Hospital's urinary trauma ward.

Fine compendium. Here's one that's new to me: "Remember , gentlemen, what a Roman emperor said: The corpse of an enemy always smells sweet."

The unattributed 'unjust distribution of wealth' quote? That was mine. One could apply that sentiment to any number of commentators and political aspirants. But we mustn't venture into Politicsland.

You mean Hoffer? Also: 'It is easier to love humanity as a whole than to love one's neighbor.' And: " The sick in soul insist that humanity is sick, and they are the surgeons to operate on it. They want to turn the world into a sickroom. And once they get humanity strapped to the operating table, they operate on it with an ax."

Not off topic, at all. Right over the plate.

"It's an irony of history that those who lecture us about the unjust distribution of wealth have been the most pathetically inept at providing it."

Who's the author who said, "God is on the side of the big battalions". Voltaire?

In her eyes, I see heroism.

Then there's the formidable longshoreman/philosopher Eric Hoffer, the likeliest rival to Napoleon in the sheer volume of pungent aphorisms. “We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves.” “People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them.” "Everyone expects the Jews to be the only real Christians in this world.” “Anger is the prelude to courage.” “Nonconformists travel as a rule in bunches. You rarely find a nonconformist who goes it alone. And woe to him inside a nonconformist clique who does not conform with nonconformity.” “The greatest weariness comes from work not done.” “It has often been said that power corrupts. But it is perhaps equally important to realize that weakness, too, corrupts. Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many. Hatred, malice, rudeness, intolerance, and suspicion are the faults of weakness. The resentment of the weak does not spring from any injustice done to them but from their sense of inadequacy and impotence. We cannot win the weak by sharing our wealth with them. They feel our generosity as oppression.” “Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all the unifying agents. Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a god, but never without a belief in a devil.” “What monstrosities would walk the streets were some people's faces as unfinished as their minds.” “The quality of ideas seems to play a minor role in mass movement leadership. What counts is the arrogant gesture, the complete disregard of the opinion of others, the singlehanded defiance of the world.” “We can be absolutely certain only about things we do not understand.” “It is thus with most of us; we are what other people say we are. We know ourselves chiefly by hearsay. ” “Compassion is the antitoxin of the soul: where there is compassion even the most poisonous impulses remain relatively harmless.”

Pretty feeble, indeed. No doubt due to Hitler's diarrhetic mode of conversation. Compared to Stalin: "A single death is a tragedy, a million is a statistic" Gruesome, but punchy. It gets the job done. Or, George S. Patton: "Watch what people are cynical about, and one can discover what they lack".

Good one. Also, "One should never forbid what one lacks the power to prevent." You could fill several pages with Napoleon's pithy remarks. Poll: Who was the greatest aphorist? Hypothetical nominees- Oscar Wilde, La Rochefoucauld, Jonathon Swift.... Stalin came up with a few, deeply cynical, zingers. Hitler? Not so much.

Who said the man couldn't turn a phrase? “Vengeance has no foresight.” “If you wish to be a success in the world, promise everything, deliver nothing.” “Courage cannot be counterfeited. It is one virtue that escapes hypocrisy.” “Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets.” “He who cannot look over a battlefield with a dry eye, causes the death of many men uselessly.” “Imagination governs the world.” "Men are led by toys." “In order not to be astonished at obtaining victories, one ought not to think only of defeats.” “In politics nothing is immutable. Events carry within them an invincible power.” “One can lead a nation only by helping it see a bright outlook. A leader is a dealer in hope.” “One must change one’s tactics every ten years if one wishes to maintain one’s superiority.” “One must indeed be ignorant of the methods of genius to suppose that it allows itself to be cramped by forms. Forms are for mediocrity, and it is fortunate that mediocrity can act only according to routine. Ability takes its flight unhindered.” “Our credulity is a part of the imperfection of our natures. It is inherent in us to desire to generalize, when we ought, on the contrary, to guard ourselves very carefully from this tendency.” “Our hour is marked, and no one can claim a moment of life beyond what fate has predestined.” “The best way to keep one’s word is not to give it.” “The laws of circumstance are abolished by new circumstances.” We frustrate many designs against us by pretending not to see them.” “It requires more courage to suffer than to die.” “A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of "colored ribbon. “There are only two forces in the world, the sword and the spirit. In the long run the sword will always be conquered by the spirit.” “Among those who dislike oppression are many who like to oppress.” “An order that can be misunderstood will be misunderstood.” “I have only one counsel for you — be master.” “Character is victory organized.” “There are only two forces that unite men — fear and interest.” “There is but one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.” “Send me 300 francs; that sum will enable me to go to Paris. There, at least, one can cut a figure and surmount obstacles. Everything tells me I shall succeed. Will you prevent me from doing so for the want of 100 crowns?” “History is a set of lies agreed upon.” “He who fears being conquered is certain of defeat.” “When I want any good head work done; I always choose a man, if possible with a long nose.”

Unnecessary. She immobilized the perp with a strategically placed knee and a steely, Amazonian grip. Here's Mikaela is in some kind of Ninja Warrior competition:

An immigrant pickpocket made the unwise decision to try to steal from a group of off-duty police officers. The result was captured in a viral Instagram picture shared by the Swedish police officer, the ultra-fit Mikaela Kellner, who tackled the dude in her bikini.

Niall78/Niall Ferguson... Separated at birth?

I found an anomaly at 23:40. During a mail delivery, the courier's horse is shown with stirrups. These were invented by the Chinese during the first centuries AD and only arrived in Europe during the early Middle Ages although some accounts date their appearance to the Byzantines circa 600.

Damn, I should have stuck to my guns.

An Ancients buff, as well. I found myself impressed by the accurate depiction of the Legionaries' kit. Worth a read: Legionary: The Roman Soldier's (Unofficial) Manual https://www.amazon.com/Legionary-Roman-Soldiers-Unofficial-Manual-ebook/dp/B00FNIXWEA/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1469563069&sr=1-1&keywords=legionary#nav-subnav And it's damned funny, as well.

That sounds like a win/win for both of us. Sorry, just noticed your post.

Letters from the Roman Front Wiki: The Vindolanda tablets are the oldest surviving handwritten documents in Britain.They are also probably the best source of information about life on the northern frontier of Roman Britain.Written on fragments of thin, post-card sized wooden leaf-tablets with carbon-based ink, the tablets date to the 1st and 2nd centuries AD (roughly contemporary with Hadrian's Wall). Although similar records on papyrus were known from elsewhere in the Roman Empire, wooden tablets with ink text had not been recovered until 1973, when archaeologist Robin Birley discovered these artifacts at the site of a Roman fort in Vindolanda, northern England. The documents record official military matters as well as personal messages to and from members of the garrison of Vindolanda, their families, and their slaves. Highlights of the tablets include an invitation to a birthday party held in about 100 AD, which is perhaps the oldest surviving document written in Latin by a woman. Held at the British Museum, the texts of 752 tablets have been transcribed, translated and published as of 2010. Tablets continue to be found at Vindolanda.

Technicians have postulated that the market is driven by the ying/yang of hope and fear, 'fundamentals' being merely a smoke screen. Elliott Wave theory, for example, claims to forecast trends by charting extremes in investor psychology, ie., the swings of optimism to pessimism and vice versa. Did Hitler, in the short term, generate optimism? If so, it seems that would have a bearing on the reported rise in birthrates. And, please, no pro-Nazi insinuations. Let's keep it at room temperature.