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May 30 ROMEIn December 2002, my husband and I arrived at Ghedi AB, Italy to begin what would be a 3 year, military tour. During our first couple of months in Italy we stayed in a local hotel, The Residence Il Sogno in Desenzano. Staying in a hotel at Christmas time isn't much fun, so my husband and I decided to take a tour of Rome being offered by SATO Travel. We left by bus the day after Christmas for 4 nights and 5 days in the capital city of Italy, Rome. Since my father's ancestors are from Italy, I was most anxious to see as much of the country as possible. We arrived in Rome late in the afternoon and bought a travel book on Rome to read as we ate our dinner.
To modern Italians, the popular legend of the founding of Rome is the legend of Romulus and Remus, twin sons born to Princess Rhea Silvia and the God of War, Mars. The twins were set adrift, at birth, on the River Tiber in a reed basket. They floated downstream until the basket was caught in the branches of a fig tree. Here they were found by a she-wolf who suckled them until a shepherd found them. The two boys were raised by the shepherd and his wife. As the boys grew into men, they were told of their true origins and so they decided to found a new city close to where they had been washed ashore and caught by the fig tree. Reading omens of the flight of birds, they decided to build their city on Palatine Hill and that Romulus should be the King. Romulus took to marking the city's boundaries with a plough drawn by a white bull and a white cow. Remus, however, leapt over the furrow, either in jest or derision causing Romulus to loose his temper and kill his brother.
The Latins settled in the wider area of Rome around 1000 BC and these early settlements were not to be mistaken for a city. Residents kept pigs, herded sheep, goats, cattle, and lived in primitive huts. The Greeks settled to the south of them and the Etruscans settled to the north. Though the Latins learnt many of their skills from the Greeks, around 650 to 600 BC the Etruscans crossed the Tiber River and occupied Latium. It is through this crossing that it is believed that the settlement on the Palatine Hill was brought together with the settlments on surrounding hills, either in an attempt to fend off invaders or, once conquered, the Etruscian masters sought to rule their kingdom via a structure of city states. We do know that at this point in history the first known kings appeared.
Today's Rome reflects the stratification of its' long history, but it is also a huge contemporary metropolis. The historical centre of Rome contains areas from Ancient Rome; medieval times; Renaissance Era; fountains, churches, and palaces from Baroque Times; with examples of Art Nouveau, Neoclassic, Modernism, Rationalism, and other artistic styles of the 19th and 20th Centuries. Rome today is one of the most important tourist destinations of the world due to its' museums, aqueducts, fountains, churches, palaces, historical buildings, monuments, ruins of the Roman Forum, the Catacombs, and the five Major Basilicas of the Catholic Church. Sightseeing in Rome was the greatest! We walked the streets during the day time and at night and it was wonderful. The Coliseum at night, all lit up, was an ancient marvel. We ate dinner across the street from the Coliseum at a restaurant named, "The Gladiator" with a charming waiter who called himself the Godfather of Rome. It was delightful.
Then we visited the Roman Forum. The Roman Forum was the political and economical centre of Rome during the Republic. It was abandoned at the end of the 4th Century. It is located in a valley between the Capitoline Hill on the west, the Palatine Hill on the south, the Velia on the east, and Quirinal Hill and Esquiline Hill to the north. The Forum contained the central political, religious, and judicial buildings in ancient Rome. The Regia was the residence of the kings, the Curia was the meeting place of the Senate, and the Comitium and the Rostra were where the public meetings were held. Major temples and sanctuaries include the Temple of Castor and Pollux, the Temple of Saturn and the Temple of Vesta, and commercial and judicial activities took place in the basilicas, two remaining are the Basilica Aemilia and the Basilica Julia. Due to the Forum's political importance there were numerous honorary monuments there also.
In imperial times the importance of the Roman Forum as a political centre diminished but it remained as a centre of commerce and religious life. New construction consisted of honorary monuments such as the Arch of Augustus, the Arch of Titus, and the Arch of Septimius. New religious buildings were: the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina and the Temple of Vespasian and Titus. The Basilica of Maxentius was built in the 4th Century.
The Roman Forum suffered damage and destruction repeatedly when political strife in republican times deteriorated into violence. Fires were always a problem, the worst of which took place in 283 CE. Later the Forum suffered destruction and pillage at the hands of invaders. Most of buildings in the Forum were destroyed completely in 410 CE, when the Ostrogoths of Alaric sacked the town. With the ban on non-Christian cults in 394 CE, religious sites were abandoned and fell in ruin. Many of the remaining buildings served as quarries for other construction sites in Rome during the Renaissance Era and later, including the stripping of white marble from building facades, and dirt piled up to 5-7 metters above the street level of antiquity, covering all but the tallest ruins.
Archaeological excavations began in the 18th Century, but in the 20th Century only a small amount of excavation was done. The original street level has been restored over a large part of the Forum and the whole area has been designated an archaeological site, open to public visitors. When my husband and I first entered the Roman Forum in December 2002, a great feeling of doom fell over me. I couldn't explain the terrible grief I felt. I found myself telling my husband that it grieved me to see the Forum in such a state and how dare the Romans strip the buildings of their beautiful white, marble facades. I stated over and over how the Romans had shamed themselves by destroying their history.
That is the reason for this blog on Rome. I had never been to Rome before this trip and the terrible feeling of doom, destruction, and shame that came over me is something that I do not understand. Is it possible to inherit past locality specific information in our genes? I remember studying in grade school how Neanderthal man inherited the information of their ancestors at birth so that knowledge was handed down from one generation to another without man having first-hand knowledge. Of course back then it was taught that there was a missing link between Homosapian man and Neanderthal man; now we know they lived side-by-side in Europe until Neanderthal man became extinct and Homosapian man lived on into modern history.
Have any of my fellow bloggers ever had feelings like this while visiting places that you had never been before? What is your explanation? May 29 Memorial DayMemorial Day
Let us pause in our celebrating to honor the men and women who have fought and died for this country. And, for those who still fight in far off places. For, without these brave men and women our country would not be what it is today! God Bless All Of You. May 24 The DaVinci CodeOn the way to work this morning I listened on Talk Radio to a guest host on a tirade about the DaVinci Code, book and movie. His stand was that his religion (and he didn't state his religion) was being blastphemed by the idea that Christ was placed on the same level as humans (Christ was married to Mary Magdalene and had a child). It would ruin this talk host's religious beliefs if Christ was proven to be anything but GOD. This show host was taking calls and yelling at callers that anyone reading the DaVinci Code or attending the movie was a blaspheming, anti-religious, heathen. Well, I have read the book and I have seen the movie and I do not consider myself any of these things.
The premise in the DaVinci Code (fictional) book is that the Catholic Church has kept secret for thousands of years the fact that Christ was only human, was married to Mary Magdalene, and that they had a child.
"Takes on human form" is a key phrase here. If GOD becomes human then he takes on human frailty and characteristics. Human men in biblical times were most often married and had children.
The apostles of Jesus Christ formed the beginnings of the Christian Church. The apostles spread the Gospel and provided structure for the early Church. It is hard to differentiate the beginnings of the Roman Catholic Church from that of early Christian Church. Peter, the apostle, was the central figure in organizing and presiding over the Church. According to scriptures, Matthew 16:13-19, Christ said to Peter: "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church." In 313, the Roman Catholic Church was legally recognized by the Roman Emperor Constantine, and, in 380 it became the official religion of the Roman Empire. The Church remained united from 380-1054. At this time, the Eastern Orthodox Church separated from the Roman Catholic Church. The main cause of this split was the primacy of the Pope. The next schism that occurred in the Roman Catholic Church was in the sixteenth century, with the Protestant Reformation, started by Martin Luther in Germany with his 95 theses posted on the door of the castle at Wittenberg, Germany. Roman Catholics regard the Church under the successor of Peter as the one, universal church, all other Christians are held to be in certain, although imperfect, communion with the Catholic Church.
It is known that the Catholic Church has over the years come into information that it has not disclosed to neither its members nor the rest of the religious community. Information contained in the Dead Sea Scrolls has not been disclosed since taken inside the walls of Vatican City. Also, information that was said to be revealed by Our Lady of Fatima to three children, one of whom became a nun and revealed her visions to the Pope. Catholic Bibles are different from Protestant Bibles in that they contain the Apocrypha. The Apocrypha consists of books contained in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), but not included in the Hebrew Scriptures. In addition, many theological writings were included in the Church doctrine; writings of people such as Thomas Aquinas. The Canon Law is a collection of rules and regulations that form the basic law of the Roman Catholic Church. So, how are we to know what other scriptures or writings the Catholic Church has included or excluded from church doctrine?
The movie and the book, The DaVinci Code are solely for entertainment. Jesus Christ was a great man, the son of GOD, he did great and miraculous things; being married and having a child shouldn't detract from these facts. It really irks me that talk show hosts are on TV and radio accusing Dan Brown of blasphemy because he wrote a fictional book stating that Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute and may have been Christ's wife. Jesus Christ didn't found any church, he preached a religious philosophy. Watching The DaVinci Code movie will not change the position of the Catholic Church; thousands of years haven't changed the Catholic Church. After all, did Schindler's List change the belief or non-belief in the Holocaust? May 22 The CrusadesWhat were the crusades?
The crusades were a series of military campaigns instigated and sanctioned by the Papacy that took place during the 11th-13th centuries. The original name of the crusades was the Roman Catholic Holy Wars to recapture Jerusalem and the Holy Lands from the Muslims.
Historical Background
The breakdown of the Carolingian Empire in the later 9th century, combined with the relative stabilization of local European borders after the Christianization of the Vikings, Slavs, and Magyars, meant that there was an entire class of warriors who now had very little to do but fight amongst themselves and terrorize the peasant population. The Catholic Church tried to stem this violence with the Peace and Truce of God movements.
In 1063, Pope Alexander II had given papal blessing to Iberian Christians in their war against the Muslims, granting an indulgence to those who were killed in battle. First in 1074 from Emperior Michael VII to Pope Gregory VII and in 1095 from Emperior Alexius I Commenus to Pope Urban II, came pleas for help that gave crusaders an outlet for an intense religious piety rising among the public. Religious propaganda advocating Just War to retake the Holy Lands manifested in overwhelming support for the First Crusade.
The Crusades:
Impacts of the Crusades
May 17 NSA Listening in on Phone CallsMany years ago, when I first started working for the US Government, I consented to having my phones monitored. I felt uncomfortable about it at first; however, over the years I guess I was so use to it I usually didn't give it a second thought. I never discussed anything classified or even, that I felt anyway, anything that would be interesting to government monitors. When I had classified information to discuss, I used the Government STU phone, a phone that encripts information sent over the wire.
Over the years I can remember telling people who ask to use my phones to be careful what they said because the phone was bugged. To this remark I received various reactions: some folks just didn't believe me and laughed, some folks would look funny and say they'd use another phone, and some would shrug and use the phone anyway.
I remember telling my daughters often, be careful what you say, the phones are bugged. I honestly don't think that they believed me, but we never discussed the issue indepth. My first two husbands never believed me, and that is part of the reason they are my ex-husbands (if you are going to sneak around on your wife, don't use her bugged phone). While working in Alaska, I would call my present husband's office and he had an NCO who would answer my calls with a bad Russian accent and the comment, "Hello, we are the Russians and we have secrets to sell." Manys the time my superiors would question this NCO's sense of humor.
I am not surprised by the recent disclosure of telephone monitoring. I am surprised by the fuss that is being displayed by government officials. If you work for the government, and especially if you have a high clearance, you should have known from the day you started working that your calls can and will be monitored. That the public objects, I can understand, but if you have nothing to hide, you can learn to live with it. Then again, if you are sneaking around, and do not want ANYONE, family or government to know what you're doing, I guess you have a problem.
May 16 How Much Can You Not Pay Me?First I'd like to thank the website, www.americaforrichardson.org for posting my blogs about Governor Richardson without my permission or a trackback. I'd think that you would want to post positive material for your candidate, but, here's another one for ya to post.
In my never ending quest for a more interesting and profitable means of making a living, I stumbled across the New Mexico State website and took a look under employment. Several interesting job descriptions caught my eye. I submitted an application online and received a phone call. I spoke with someone (I won't post names) who described a very interesting position open with New Mexico State up in Santa Fe. During our phone conversation, this person told me that after reading my resume, they felt that I would be a good candidate for one position. After all I have a BA and an MA degree and over 25 years experience in this field; would I be interested in an interview?
I was holding my cellphone waiting to be penciled in for interview slot, when the person said, "Oh, by the way, we pay 862, are you still interested?" 862 what? $862 a day, $8,062 a month, or $86,062 a year? "No, $8.62 an hour." I hope that you're joking? "No, we pay $8.62 an hour, are you still interested in the position." NO! After a few seconds of silence, the person ask, "Have you worked for New Mexico before?" NO, and I don't think that I ever will. It's too bad that New Mexico would pass up well-trained, very experienced workers because they want to pay poor wages.
Now let's all vote for Governor Bill Richardson. We've Created A War We Can Not WinSince the beginning of history, man has waged war against man, city state against city state, nation against nation, country against country. War has always been with us like a plague against humanity. But now, we the American people have created a war that we can not win.
In the beginning wars were fought to take possession of usually resources. By resources I mean--food, gold (or other precious jewels or minerals), or livestock. Cavemen probably fought over that day's kill. The concept was that one person or a small group of people possessed something that the other person or group of people did not possess; therefore, war was fought to take possession of something.
As years went by and more people inhabited the earth, wars were usually fought for territory. Armies were raised and invaded other areas of the world in order to conquer and expand their areas of influence. This is how great empires were born. The Greek, Persian, Ottoman, and Roman Empires came about through large armies invading other areas, other city states, other countries, other nations, in order to expand their areas of influence, culture, economies over what was then known as the Old World.
With these wars, these invasions, came powerful conquerors. Too many names to list here in this short blog, but these conquerors set the precedence for war. In order to build great empires, these conquerors slaughtered thousands of innocent people and took possession of large areas of land mass. When they fought wars--they took what they wanted, laid waste to what they did not want, and the inhabitants of these areas either joined the conquering tribes or they were killed or enslaved.
Over thousands of years, wars, for countries other than America has not changed much. World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, wars fought to rid countries of one leader and install another leader, not always a better leader, but a different ideology. At the end of these wars the land area was divided among the conquerors; new countries were born and old countries died in the wake. Not always for the better, not always with the permission of the conquered indigenous people, sometimes leading to other problems that lead to future wars, future conflicts.
Now here we find ourselves in Iraq, we meaning the American people. This is the second war that we have found ourselves in where we were not ask to help out other nations in distress. We are invaders (conquerors). But, now in this day and age, we want to use a new method of civilized war. Americans do not want to see or hear of human slaughter, ruining of the land, torture, bombs dropped on innocent individuals. We want to tie the hands of our conquering army; we want them to be civilized. WAR is not a civilized reality.
If we fought war like our ancestors we wouldn't be having high gasoline prices. We would have gone into Iraq, slaughtered and enslaved the Iraqis, and we would have taken the oilfields and established the United Empire of Americans. Instead we stormed into Iraq, threw out Saddam and his sons, and settled in to let the insurgency kill as many of our American soldiers (men and women) as they possible can. And, when our Army does fight back, the American public cries and demoans the fact that we hurt someone, someone that Americans back here at home do not consider a threat to us.
We, the American public, have created a war that we can not possible win in view of the current American concept of war. Do you think that other countries would engage in a war the same way that we have come to fight a war? Do you honestly think that an invading army (from any other nation on earth) would invade America and fight in the same manner that we are fighting in Iraq? If that is what you think then you are living in a dream world.
Any other invading army on this earth would invade America and loot, slaughter, and enslave. They would take as much of the United States as they possible could and hold it captive, claim it as their own conquered territory, and any American who did not fight back or who did not give in to the conquerors, would be slaughtered. Any other invading army on this earth would not fight a civilized war, kill only military members, and then get back in their boats, their planes, whatever mode of transportation they used, and go back home. What am I trying to convey to you with this blog? Let the military fight the war, that's what we pay them to do. Civilians with great intentions need to quit fighting wars from their lounge chair, front row, TV seats. This is not a video game, this is real life.
You Can Stop Calling Now!I'd like to thank Governor Bill Richardson for calling and reminding me to vote. I'd also like to thank Mrs. Bill Richardson for calling my husband and reminding him to vote. And, yesterday's call from Mrs. Richardson reminding me to vote was appreciated. First of all, I didn't even know there was a Mrs. Bill Richardson, that's how much we hear about her here in New Mexico. Second, I'm not registered to vote here in New Mexico, I'm registered in Alaska and plan to keep it that way. Third, I wouldn't vote for Bill Richardson for Governor or President. So----You can stop calling now! Thanks! May 10 How About That Governor Bill Richardson?How about that Governor Bill Richardson? Yeah, the Governor of New Mexico was on the Larry King Live Show. Telling Larry King about what he'd do if he was President of the United States to cure the illegal immigration problem. Yeah, he has some great ideas! Ideas that he didn't tell Larry King about; all the things he has done right here in his state of New Mexico to cure the problem.
That's because he doesn't see it as a problem here in New Mexico. He thinks illegal immigrants should be welcomed across the border with balloons and a ticker-tape parade. He's given them everything free (free to him but the citizens of New Mexico are paying through the butt).
Yeah, he has some great ideas for when he becomes President of the United States, but they aren't the ones he was telling Larry King about. If he had it his way, we'd be part of Mexico.
Now he's in the Albuquerque Journal bragging about all the milliions of campaign dollars he's getting from out of state voters. That's because New Mexicans aren't stupid enough to give him money to run for president. (Although a lot of us would like to see him anywhere but here.)
So, I get home from work last night and there's a message on my answering machine. It's Bill Richardson asking me to make sure that I vote in future elections. Well, Bill, let me tell ya, I WOULDN'T MISS IT! May 09 Letter From The President of IranJust a few lines on the letter from the President of Iran.
Why is it a closed letter? By that I mean, why is the public not allowed to know what was in the letter? After 27 years of not having contact with Iran, the President receives a letter and it's a secret, and it's dismissed.
I for one would like to know what Iran had to say. Maybe it's worth listening to. Maybe it would avert a military confrontation. Maybe it would solve a lot of problems between our two countries. I don't know since I can't read what was in the letter.
It just makes me wonder if the US is just itching to attack Iran as soon as the UN passes a resolution and so it doesn't matter to the US President what Iran has to say or offer.
I'd just like to know what was in that letter. Wouldn't you? May 02 Why Are Businesses Not Being Prosecuted?We were told that businesses gave immigrants yesterday off of work in order for immigrants to march and protest for "Nothing from Gringos Day." I would like to know why businesses that freely admit hiring illegals in order to pay lower wages and avoid paying taxes and benefits (in order to put more money in their pockets), are not being prosecuted. US immigration laws read as follows:
Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii)
"Any person who...encourages or induces an illegal alien to...reside...knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such...residence is...in violation of law, shall be punished as provided...for each illegal alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs...fined under title 18...imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both."
Section 274 felonies under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, INA 274A(a)(1)(A):
A person (including a group of persons, business, organization, or local government) commits a federal felony when she or he:
assists an illegal alien s/he should reasonably know is illegally in the US or who lacks employment authorization, by transporting, sheltering, or assisting him or her to obtain employment, or
encourages that illegal alien to remain in the US by referring him or her to an employer or by acting as employer or agent for an employer in any way, or
knowingly assists illegal aliens due to personal convictions.
Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime. Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his or her work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor. Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of their vehicles or property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief.
Sounds to me like a lot of felonies were and are being committed in the name of illegal immigration. Why doesn't someone do something about this? May 01 Nothing from Gringos DayToday is "Nothing from Gringos Day"
Today is 1 May--the day illegal immigrants (mainly hispanics and their Mexican supporters) are celebrating "Nothing from Gringos Day." I have four points I would like to discuss on this matter.
#1--Here we have mass demonstrations by illegal immigrants. The American Constitution does not guarantee you any rights--it guarantees the rights of legal American citizens. You should be arrested and deported--that is another American law that is being ignored. Why are you not being shot like the legal Americans who marched and protested the Vietnam War? Why are you not being shot like legal American blacks who marched and protested during the Civil Rights Movement? No, I'm NOT advocating that you be shot for your marches and protests, it was wrong back then as it would be wrong today. I'm saying that you are in America illegally; however, you are being afforded rights that legal American citizens have been denied.
#2--You want to be allowed to stay in America at no costs to you. You have broken American laws by coming here illegally, for this you should pay the fine. You are working in America by having fake social security cards, for this there is a fine and/or jail time. You have fake drivers' licenses or ID cards, for this there is a fine and/or jail time. Many of you have or are collecting welfare or unemployment benefits, for this there is jail time and repayment of benefits. Why do you, an illegal, get away with these crimes when we, legal US citizens DO NOT?
#3--You say you want to be a legal, tax-paying, upstanding American but you bring your street gangs and lawlessness to our cities. You kill, rape, and plunder and then run back across the border to Mexico where your relatives and governments hide and back you. If we came to your countries and behaved that way, your governments would kill us without a trial or even an explanation.
#4--It's bad enough that you hold your marches and protests illegally and our law enforcement and immigration officials look the other way, but you do it in Spanish waving a Mexican flag.
You don't want to be American citizens, working and helping to build a better place for your children and mine. You just want as much as you can get at the lowest price (free).
If you really want to be an American, register the fact that you're here illegally, pay your fine(s), learn English and American History, speak English and wave an American flag and then I'll get behind you and back you. Until then, shutup and go hide or go back home! |
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