Orange Ceasar Rises

[Rev. Rye]

The more I look at this situation, the more I’m reminded by this quote from Karm Marx:

Hegel remarks somewhere that all great world-historic facts and personages appear, so to speak, twice. He forgot to add: the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.

The initial tragedy in this case can be a lot of things, from the rise of Nazism in Germany all the way down to the 2016 election, but it becomes clear that, thankfully, as evil regimes go, this has been a wash, and whether or not Trump wants to admit it, the case that he somehow won is extremely flimsy

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

I mean..it does sound like he had alot of practice killing.  Probably better at it than either of us.  

Being practiced at killing isn’t the same as being a fighter.

Boru

[Anomalocaris]

Incompetent despots who lasted a long time is not scarce in the Caribbean and Central America.   Who said their natural territory does not include north of Rio Grande as well?

---

Caligula is more apt.    Nero has an appreciation for the arts, commodus is said to be able to fight.

Caligula gets a lot of bad press he doesn’t deserve. Commodus was ‘said’ to be able to fight. I’m not sure that clubbing bound amputees so he could pretend to be Hercules counts as ‘fighting’.

Boru

But Trump’s appointing Ivanka, Jarod, Carson, Devos and Pompeo to the administration is matched only by Caligula appointing his horse Incitatus to consulship of Rome.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Caligula gets a lot of bad press he doesn’t deserve. Commodus was ‘said’ to be able to fight. I’m not sure that clubbing bound amputees so he could pretend to be Hercules counts as ‘fighting’.

Boru

But Trump’s appointing Ivanka, Jarod, Carson, Devos and Pompeo to the administration is matched only by Caligula appointing his horse Incitatus to consulship of Rome.

It isn’t matched at all, because it’s almost a certainty that Caligula never did that. It’s important to remember that our two chief sources about Caligula’s reign are Suetonius and Dio who wrote long after the fact and were likely to have relied on material written by people who hated Caligula.

Read less Robert Graves and more Mary Beard.

Boru

[GUBU]

Commodus was a good fighter though. Trump couldn't whip cream.

---

Umm he actually real opponents

---

Caligula appreciated art

From the Wikipedia entry on Commodus:

Commodus' opponents always submitted to the emperor; as a result he never lost. Commodus never killed his gladiatorial adversaries, instead accepting their surrenders. His victories were often welcomed by his bested opponents, as bearing scars dealt by the hand of an Emperor was considered a mark of fortitude.[32] Citizens of Rome missing their feet through accident or illness were taken to the arena, where they were tethered together for Commodus to club to death while pretending they were giants.Privately, it was also his custom to kill his opponents during practice matches.

Colour me less than impressed.

Boru

Hey, anybody capable of killing Russell Crowe is not all bad.

[The Valkyrie]

From the Wikipedia entry on Commodus:


Colour me less than impressed.

Boru

Hey, anybody capable of killing Russell Crowe is not all bad.

You got me there.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Russell Crowe is a damned fine actor. Pity he’s such a shite in real life.

Boru

[Anomalocaris]

But Trump’s appointing Ivanka, Jarod, Carson, Devos and Pompeo to the administration is matched only by Caligula appointing his horse Incitatus to consulship of Rome.

It isn’t matched at all, because it’s almost a certainty that Caligula never did that. It’s important to remember that our two chief sources about Caligula’s reign are Suetonius and Dio who wrote long after the fact and were likely to have relied on material written by people who hated Caligula.

Read less Robert Graves and more Mary Beard.

Boru

Actually, AFAIK, neither Suetonius nor Dio actually said Caligula actually made Incitatus a consul.  Only he planned to, or he he lavished upon the horse as if the horse held the social status commensurate with high office.

But whether he actually did or if he seriously planned to is not the point of comparison.    In Christian culture, especially Protestant evangelical culture, early roman emperors such as Nero and Caligula have become crude symbolic caricatures of cruel and risible excess of incompetent tyranny.   So when it is said that someone is like Nero, it is not to say someone did what Nero most surely also had done,      Instead it sis to say someone is quite as bad as Nero is said to have been as manifested by what Nero is said to have done, such as fiddling while Rome burned.  

So if I say trump rallied while covid-19 spread like Nero fiddled while Rome burned, it does not mean I think Nero really played the fiddle during the great fire.  In fact I know Nero open his palace to the refugees during the fire, institute an efficient relief program after the fire,  and inserted far sighted preventive measure in Rome’s building code by way of leaning the lesson in a manner the likes of which no members of trump administration can pull off.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

It isn’t matched at all, because it’s almost a certainty that Caligula never did that. It’s important to remember that our two chief sources about Caligula’s reign are Suetonius and Dio who wrote long after the fact and were likely to have relied on material written by people who hated Caligula.

Read less Robert Graves and more Mary Beard.

Boru

Actually, AFAIK, neither Suetonius nor Dio actually said Caligula actually made Incitatus a consul.  Only he planned to, or he he lavished upon the horse as if the horse held the social status commensurate with high office.

But whether he actually did or if he seriously planned to is not the point of comparison.    In Christian culture, especially Protestant evangelical culture, early roman emperors such as Nero and Caligula have become crude symbolic caricatures of cruel and risible excess of incompetent tyranny.   So when it is said that someone is like Nero, it is not to say someone did what Nero most surely also had done,      Instead it sis to say someone is quite as bad as Nero is said to have been as manifested by what Nero is said to have done, such as fiddling while Rome burned.  

So if I say trump rallied while covid-19 spread like Nero fiddled while Rome burned, it does not mean I think Nero really played the fiddle during the great fire.  In fact I know Nero open his palace to the refugees during the fire, institute an efficient relief program after the fire,  and inserted far sighted preventive measure in Rome’s building code by way of leaning the lesson in a manner the likes of which no members of trump administration can pull off.

Then it would be a match if Trump only planned to install his useless, unqualified family in government. So...not a match.

Boru

[Rank Stranger]

Commodus was a good fighter though. Trump couldn't whip cream.

I don't know enough Roman history to comment on that part.  But I think it's worth pointing out that Trump doesn't have to whip anybody.  He only has to hire people who can.
People like Barr and Pompeo.  I think competence and corruption are negatively correlated, so it's not often that you find people like Barr and Pompeo who are utterly corrupt but competent.  They're not the only ones in Trump's orbit- that's what he looks for.
If Citrus Caesar fully ripens, it'll be via faithless electors.
https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/524...s-electors