Alex Petkas - Cost of Glory Profile picture
May 31, 2024 13 tweets 5 min read Read on X
The US is entering uncharted waters.

Political prosecutions are what brought down the Roman Republic.

Here's how. 🧵 Image
Donald Trump is the first US president to be indicted, let alone ruled a felon by a US court.

The court system of any society is designed to be a neutral arbiter of disputes;

Trust in the courts is crucial to prevent spirals of retributive violence. Image
In Rome, an office holder was immune from prosecution while holding office

A consul could not be prosecuted during his 1 year term

Same for a "proconsul" = a consul w/ term extended, usually serving as a general or provincial governor

in 50 BC, Julius Caesar was a Proconsul. Image
Caesar's enemies - Cato and friends - were publicly vowing to prosecute Caesar when his term ended

Caesar had been a successful general for nearly 10 years, conquered all of Gaul

Cato claimed they had 10 years worth of crimes to prosecute him for. Image
Caesar wanted to run for Consul again, to renew his immunity.

Unfortunately, to run for consul in Rome, you have to lay down your proconsular office & enter the city.

Caesar would have to become a private citizen in Rome for several months

(Plenty of time for a prosecution) Image
Caesar asked the authorities for an exception - to "run in absentia"

(in recognition of his achievements on behalf of Rome)

Thus he could keep immunity over the transition to new office

In 52, a law was passed to allow this

But by 50, Caesar's enemies had unwound the law.
Cato & Friends now forced Caesar into a dilemma:

Either
a) Lay down your office & face prosecution,
OR
b) start a Civil War

(in 50, Caesar's legal term of office was expiring) Image
Cato & Friends drew Rome's other greatest leader, Pompey, onto their side

Caesar tried to negotiate

Pompey dug in his heels

Ultimatums were issued.

They all thought Caesar would back down. Image
Caesar took the Nuclear Option and crossed the Rubicon in January, 49 BC

(The Rubicon River was the boundary of Caesar's province: crossing it amounted to a declaration of war)

This explains why political trials can become so dangerous: Image
If there is no neutral arbiter, the recourse is usually violence

Caesar claimed Cato & Senate were corrupt, motivated by personal animosity

(they did undo some laws, after all)

Cato & co. said "Caesar is a threat to the Republic"

Who could adjudicate, except the gods of war? Image
The threat of prosecution motivates heads of state to cling to power in many "third world" countries.

A precedent has been set.

The Biden family now have reason to fear prosecution if they lose the election

The stakes have been raised, massively Image
From Caesar's crossing of the Rubicon in 49 BC
... to avoid political prosecution

Until Actium in 31 BC,

Rome passed through a long period of civil war

Which ended in the establishment of a monarchy.

Is the die cast?

This is why we study history. Image
For the full story, listen to some of my bios from the Cost of Glory Podcast.

Such as Pompey, Episodes 83-85 Image

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More from @costofglory

Jun 27
How do you convince terrified people to face their worst fears?

Julius Caesar mastered this in 58 BC with a framework so powerful, it's still taught in leadership courses today.

Here are his 7 tactics…🧵 Image
Rome’s Darkest Hour:

• Caesar had just won his first major victory (vs. Helvetii)

• His 5-year command hung by a thread

• German tribes threatened Roman allies

• His aristocratic officers sought to flee from Ariovistus's army

• The whispered M-word: mutiny

A perfect case study in crisis leadership.Image
Caesar's Opening Move: Converting Fear into Fighting Spirit

• Calls full war council (unprecedented - includes lowest ranks)

• Directly confronts fear, ignores excuses

• Uses shame as a tactical weapon

• “Why do you despair of your own courage or of my competence?

Key lesson: Address the emotion, not the rationalization.

Fear masquerading as logic.Image
Read 9 tweets
Jun 23
Cato never wore a crown, yet corrupt Roman officials TREMBLED at his name.

Rome’s most unyielding senator revealed a paradox of power that’s been hiding in plain sight for 2,000 years... 🧵 Image
1. Make disagreeable choices with conviction

While Roman senators wore purple-trimmed togas to flaunt status, Cato entered the Senate with simplicity, dressed in a plain tunic.

When Caesar offered him a lucrative provincial post to get him out of Rome, he refused.

Cato did not budge, his statements held true integrity.

Even his enemies had to admit it: Cato could not be bought.

When both Caesar and Pompey tried to draw him into political alliance through family marriage offers, he rejected them. Every refusal amplified his independence.Image
2. Stand firm in the face of mockery

The Roman elite mocked Cato for his simple lifestyle and stubborn principles.

Plutarch records that Cato never responded, he simply kept living the same way. This unnerved his rivals.

Caesar even wrote a pamphlet titled "Anti-Cato", an entire essay meant to discredit him. That’s how much his integrity stung.Image
Read 8 tweets
Jun 7
In 54 BC, Caesar faced impossible odds in Britain.

His response revealed 3 principles that can separate a world historical conqueror from a forgotten also-ran... 🧵 Image
1: Adaptability wins. Be the Fox.

Caesar's legions were struggling against British charioteers who were riding up and down the field around like Indo-European warlords. (They used effective hit-and-run tactics). So, Caesar didn't stick to Roman doctrine. Instead, he innovated.

His heavy infantry was outmaneuvered, so he adapted his cavalry tactics:

He ordered them to fight in loose formation, to maintain gaps between riders, thereby dispersing the momentum of the chariots in useless pass-throughs. It's kind of wu-wei.

Then, his enemies refused open battle.

He changed his strategy:

- Burned villages in "King" Cassivellaunus's territory.

- Destroyed British grain fields that were ready for harvest.

They eventually came out to fight, and exposed themselves to defeats on the battlefield.

Great leaders evolve fast (and Caesar was faster than most)Image
2: Information Gluttony

Before landing, Caesar meticulously gathered intelligence about Britain's geography, tribes, and politics.

But then, he kept gathering intel after arriving. He discovered, for instance, that the Britons practiced family wife swapping, a fact which your average grug might consider just weird and useless, but you never know when that kind of information might come in handy. Caesar loved the details.

He loved studying their technology too: besides the chariots, he was particularly struck by a special kind of light raft the Britons used to navigate rivers. This technology proved decisive later in the Civil War, when a historic flood crippled supply lines during the Battle of Ilerda.

Caesar also learned about the family feuds of the various tribes in the coalition opposing him. It wasn't gossip, it was crucial intel.

When British tribes united under Cassivellaunus, Caesar knew their weaknesses and internal rivalries. This knowledge proved decisive:Image
Read 6 tweets
Feb 4
This is what they said about Cato the Younger.

Before he faced off with Julius Caesar,

Cato was the worst nightmare of crooked Roman elites and the bureaucrats who protected them.

To DOGE and other anti-corruption crusaders:

Here are some lessons from your founding hero 🧵 Image
As a young man Cato was elected Quaestor.

Duties consisted of accounting and paperwork.

For most ambitious youths, this bookish role was just a stepping stone, a formality.

"Don't piss anyone off" was the going wisdom.

But Cato used it to take on Rome's most powerful men. Image
Here's how Cato prepared himself:

1) ABANDON LUXURY

Cato inherits $$ at age 16—Enough for a life of elite mediocrity in his lavish household.

Instead, moves out and studies intensely. Philosophy, law, religion.

It's his "sigma grindset" phase.

He trains himself to travel everywhere on foot, and be indifferent to heat and cold.
Read 14 tweets
Dec 3, 2024
Emperor Julian gets unlimited power, has one goal: Kill Christianity and restore the old gods.

20 months later, he is dead.

His legacy?

One dead goose, several humiliations, and a nickname that stuck:

“Julian the Apostate.”

His lessons on how (not) to revive a religion:
🧵 Image
Context: 4th c. AD.

The old ways are dying.

The traditional paganism of Rome and Greece of Homer, Plato, Caesar, Aurelius – is losing its edge.

Despite decades of persecution – thousands of martyrs burned, crucified, and fed to lions — Christianity is booming. Image
In 313AD, Julian’s uncle Constantine shocks the Empire: He legalizes Christianity, then becomes Christian himself.

Over the next 40 years, Christianity goes from an outlawed cult to Rome’s de facto official religion.

But the old ways endure.

Not everyone bows to the new god. Image
Read 15 tweets
Nov 18, 2024
America needs Education reform. BUT

Great Books is for Losers.

If you think they (or concepts like "the Canon") provide the solution for restoring American education, you might be a loser too.

Some highlights from my latest piece for the American Mind. 🧵 Image
1/ A list of Great Books is not what forged men of the great ages of the past Image
2/ The famous programs are new innovations that have largely assimilated the US post-war liberal paradigm

@ProfEricAdler has characterized this curriculum as "Plato to NATO"

It's focused on "ideas" "critical discussion" and many other watered-down things Image
Read 8 tweets

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