Athens and Sparta: the ancient Navy and Marine Corps

Officers in military careers serve as leaders of the nation. They stand for all the right things. They accept responsibility and take the blame when things go wrong. As an officer in the Navy though, we owe our specific skillsets to developing our country through the sea. Our history remains important to us as it carries on our traditions from the beginning of the nation to now. The Ancient Greek civilization proves significantly useful to be knowledgeable about as the Athenians held a maritime-based way of life.

The Athenians relied on the sea for their power. As a Navy, so do we. The Athenians built their own empire through the sea by using their ships to conquer other nations. By building a great Navy, they allowed their expansion and influence to reach all over the Mediterranean. They used triremes to wage wars on other nations. Even though Athens was by no means the largest city-state, it became one of the richest.

Not saying that the Navy should dominate and lord over other countries, but the Navy could learn from Athenian history on how to maximize their efficiency and influence around the world. The Athenians thought things through. “For this the allies had themselves to blame; the wish to get off service making most of them arrange to pay their share of the expense in money instead of in ships, and so to avoid having to leave their homes. Thus while Athens was increasing her navy with the funds which they contributed, a revolt always found them without resources or experience for war.” (Thucydides 1.99). They spent their money wisely and focused on building up their nation.

Ancient Greece also served as a good example for officers with the Spartans. Sparta, a warrior city-state, specialized in land attacks and built their empire up in that manner. Sparta provides a good example for the Marines to follow. The Marines possess a warrior culture focused on brotherly bonds. A similar mindset to that of the Spartans. Every person of different ranks eats, sleeps, works, and fights together. The Spartans earned their fame for being the toughest soldiers around. At the Battle of Thermopylae, three hundred Spartan soldiers stood together and held off the entire Persian army. They eventually perished, but not before taking a large portion of the Persian army with them. The Spartans inspired the rest of Greece to fight against the Persians too.

Ancient Greece serves as a great example for officers of the military to study because it embodies so much. The contrasting styles of the Athenians and the Spartans allow for multiple solutions to the same problems. Not only this, but their more notable strategies can be applied to the Navy and Marine Corps today. Both Athens and Sparta held the most powerful navies and armies of the ancient world. Because of this, officers should study their history before entering the fleet.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 416

Thucydides 1.99

Confucianism: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Ideally, Utopian societies succeed. Everything works as it should, a perfect world. However, very rarely do those theories that ought to be successful come to fruition. Oftentimes, some small error causes great ideas to fail. Confucianism and the rule of scholars shows that sometimes good ideas work out and sometimes it is too good to be true.

Staffing a bureaucracy with scholars works because the intellectuals are put in charge. These people study their entire lives. They learn about history to prevent history from repeating itself. Confucianism included passing down lessons from generation to generation. This ensured that knowledge was less likely to be lost. Confucianism also stabilized the government. The Han Dynasty especially used it to maintain control over their empire. It allowed for levelheaded leaders to think through what should be done for the good of China. Putting educated scholars in charge allowed for emotion to be removed from the decision-making process. One of the teachings of Confucius states “To govern simply by statute, and to reduce all to order by means of pains and penalties, is to render the people evasive, and devoid of any sense of shame” (Confucius Book 2). This reveals how they could make clear and level decisions that were for the best of the people. Scholars could analyze what exactly had happened in similar events in the past, what course of action was taken, and how it affected the outcome. They decided what worked and what did not work. Thus improving decision making and bringing about stability.

On the flip side, putting scholars in charge of the government possessed its downsides. Ideally, scholars made the best decisions, but in actuality it’s impossible. Just like communism, it might look good, but in practicality it will not work. Scholars do not always understand what is really occurring in the world. They assume that an idea works because it worked in the past, but no two situations are the same. They might rely only on past knowledge and forget that changes have occurred in technology. Or they might rely on events to happen in a certain manner where fate has a different idea. Another of Cunfucius’ stories states “Let a leader,” said he, “show rectitude in his own personal character, and even without directions from him things will go well. If he be not personally upright, his directions will not be complied with” (Confucius Book 13). This proves how wrong some of the ideas could be, even though they theoretically should work. Scholars often remain distant and disjointed from society. This prevents them from accurately having a grip on the full scenario of what may be occurring in their society.

The Supreme Court proves to be a scholar-run bureaucracy in today’s world. Nine justices serve life terms to forge the path for better decision-making in the U.S. The justices hear court cases that they deem to have a large impact on the nation. They also interpret the Constitution to the best of their abilities and clarify meanings for future use. In this manner, the scholar-run bureaucracy works because the Supreme Court is the least powerful of the three branches of government. While they retain the power to interpret the constitution and label policies as unconstitutional, they cannot take on an aggressive role in society. By limiting their power, this form of Confucianism functions well without becoming corrupt.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 490

The Analects of Confucius – Book 2, www.confucius-1.com/analects/analects-2.html.

The Analects of Confucius – Book 13, http://www.confucius-1.com/analects/analects-13.html.

Christianity: Beware the Cannibals

In today’s world, Christianity remains the largest religion. However, there still exists the question of how it got to that position. The Romans thought that Christianity was strange and unnatural. In a way, they thought right.

Step back and look at Christianity from afar. This new and frightening religion’s followers ate the body and drank the blood of someone they believed to be their savior. They also sacrificed this person because he was supposed to save them. Not to mention, a ghost descended on the followers and oftentimes controlled their bodies. What kind of sick beliefs hold cannibalism and sacrifice at their core? No wonder the Romans thought they were barbarians. These people popped up out of nowhere claiming to be enlightened and introducing a new religion.

Now, people that start spouting off about random ideas are looked down upon. The world thinks of them as crazy. Similarly, Romans possessed this mindset about Christians. For all they knew, Christians brainwashed people into sharing their beliefs. Christianity spread quickly and seemed infectious. In his letters to Trajan, Pliny labeled it to be an illness, saying “For the contagion of this superstition has spread not only to the cities but also to the villages and farms. But it seems possible to check and cure it. It is certainly quite clear that the temples, which had been almost deserted, have begun to be frequented, that the established religious rites, long neglected, are being resumed, and that from everywhere sacrificial animals are coming” (Pliny Letters 10.96-97). This proved how surprised the Romans were at the emergence of Christianity. They didn’t know what to do with it.

Up until this moment in time, the Romans served as a very capable people. They created an empire and ruled it for years. Polytheism existed for them as a logical and sensible religion. The empire performed well, seemingly aligning with their devotions to the gods, so obviously the two paired together. No reason for a change of religion existed so they stayed with their polytheism.

All people view change as terrifying. Christianity affected everyone. People the Romans trusted, other Romans, converted without saying anything. When the empire caught those Romans, they had no idea what to do with them. Pliny wrote to Trajan asking for advice “For the matter seemed to me to warrant consulting you, especially because of the number involved. For many persons of every age, every rank, and also of both sexes are and will be endangered” (Pliny). To persecute a person not a Roman was one thing, but how could they possibly persecute another Roman? They valued closeness among their people. “I interrogated these as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment; those who persisted I ordered executed. For I had no doubt that, whatever the nature of their creed, stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy surely deserve to be punished. There were others possessed of the same folly; but because they were Roman citizens, I signed an order for them to be transferred to Rome” (Pliny). Pliny remained confused just as all the rulers of the different nation states did. Change brings confusion and terror.

The Roman’s fear of Christianity remains founded on sound reason. Change scares people. Christianity expanded into the empire quickly and changed almost everything. People converted to it seemingly at random. Good Romans with powerful positions switched their beliefs. A change so big that mass confusion ensued. The Christian beliefs, to an outsider, seemed horrifying. Their gruesome beliefs could not possibly hold truth behind them. The Romans portrayed superstition and fear for a reason.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 426

Hackett, Conrad, et al. “World’s Largest Religion by Population Is Still Christianity.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 5 Apr. 2017, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/05/christians-remain-worlds-largest-religious-group-but-they-are-declining-in-europe/.

Pliny Letters 10.96-97

Dreamers- The Modern Day Metics

Immigrants covet citizenship whilst native citizens often forget what they have. Needless to say, citizenship remains one of the most valuable things a person can possess, whether they know it or not. The metics of ancient Athens share similarities with the Dreamers of today because both parties contribute to society, but lack the citizenship required to reap the benefits from the country like the ability to vote, citizenship for your children, and the ability to hold a government position.

Metics served as an integral part of Athens. They breathed, ate, slept, worked, lived, and died there. Many of them, such as Lysias, aided in the war against Sparta and reinstating democracy after the fall of the Athenian empire. They dedicated their lives to helping a nation that did not even recognize them as citizens. Lysias said in his writing that “What I say is that only those have the right to sit in Council on our concerns who, besides holding the citizenship, have their hearts set upon it. For to them it makes a great difference whether this city is prosperous or unsuccessful, because they consider themselves obliged to bear their share in her calamities as they also share in her advantages. But those who, though citizens by birth, adopt the view that any country in which they have their business is their fatherland, are evidently men who would even abandon the public interest of their city to seek their private gain, because they regard their fortune, not the city, as their fatherland.” (Lysias 31.5-7). He argued that some of the metics acted more like Athenian citizens, especially during the reign of the Thirty, than some of the actual citizens did. Majority of metics were also of some Athenian descent. They either had some Athenian parent or grandparents or higher.

People not supporting metic citizenship would argue that the metics owed no loyalty to Athens. Instead, they claimed a different nation as their fatherland. To them, this meant that at the first chance, the metics would abandon Athens. Lysias proved this concept wrong though when he donated money and weapons to aid Thrasybulus. In the end, metics never received citizenship for their service, even though they often contributed enough to.

In a similar manner, the Dreamers live in the U.S. with the hope that they will have better lives here. They live in the U.S. for most of their lives, being brought here by their parents, oftentimes without citizenship. Yet everything they do goes towards benefiting the U.S.. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals causes the immigrants to become a form of metics. DACA gives immigrants protection against deportation and allows them to work, but it does not serve as a route to citizenship. If these Dreamers stay in the country and work here their entire lives, than there’s no reason why they should not be given citizenship.

Opposition to DACA argues that these immigrants- whether legal or illegal- do not contribute anything to society. They take up good jobs that should belong to hardworking citizens. However, some Dreamers work to earn their share in the American Dream. One Dreamer, Jin Park states that “According to a 2017 study, 91 percent of Dreamers are employed and will contribute $460.3 billion to the gross domestic product over the next decade. Over 65 percent of us are pursuing a degree in higher education.” (Park). Park received the Rhodes Scholarship, the first Dreamer to ever do so. Because of his status as a Dreamer, when he left to study at Oxford, he had no idea if he’d ever be able to return.

In conclusion, metics and Dreamers share several similarities. They contribute as much to society as they can with their limited abilities. In both time periods, they prove that they should be given the chance at earning citizenship. Our debate on the Electorate revealed that in hindsight, metics should have been given the opportunity to receive citizenship. The fact that a similar issue exists today shows how much of history society has forgotten.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 526

Lysias 31.5-7

Park, Jin. “I’m a Dreamer and a Rhodes Scholar. Where Do I Belong?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 Jan. 2019, http://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/11/opinion/dreamer-rhodes-scholar-human.html.

Direct Democracy- The Outdated Mob Rule

The representative model of democracy is a better way of government because a more accurate view of the public is portrayed without hindering the decision-making process. The direct model calls for every citizen to voice their opinion and make decisions about issues. When 1000 different voices are heard on the same issue, but everyone’s opinions slightly differ, then it becomes harder to make decisions. For example, the ancient Athenians used direct democracy. Any able-bodied citizen that wanted to speak came to the Assembly to give their opinion. This often made it harder for decisions to be made. Many people had their own personal goals to achieve and were unwilling to compromise with others. According to Thrasybulus, “Our constitution is called a democracy because power is in the hands not of a minority but of the whole people. When it is a question of settling private disputes, everyone is equal before the law; when it is a question of putting one person before another in positions of public responsibility, what counts is not membership of a particular class, but the actual ability which the man possesses. No one, so long as he has it in him to be of service to the state, is kept in political obscurity because of poverty” (Thucydides). Even though the citizens did not make up the entire population of Athens- there were over 25,000 metics compared to only 50,000 citizens- they still displayed enough trouble getting legislation passed. In a reenactment of the Assembly of ancient Athens, the Assembly proved that decisions were harder to make as each person had their own agenda as well as had views to align with their parties.

Part of the reason this direct democracy was not as effective was because not all of the population were able to attend Assembly meetings, even though they were welcome to. Blackwell argues that for some citizens, traveling 50 to 60 miles for an Assembly meeting was not worth it. He also argues that “This would have been especially true when emergency meetings were called on short notice, such as the occasion that Demosthenes describes, when news of a military disaster came to the city in the evening, and a special Assembly convened the very next morning (Dem. 18.169). This assembly, and any others like it, must have consisted mainly of citizens living close to the city.” (Blackwell). This would mean that while being a direct democracy, a large population would also have been missing to the point where decisions were only being made by a biased portion of the population.

On the other side of the coin, a representative democracy in today’s world proves to be the better system, even with its drawbacks. The representative democracy nominates two senators per state for the Senate. This way, every state possesses equal representation. Each state is also divided into districts based on population where they vote on one person to represent them in the House of Representatives. In this manner, a more widespread view of the population’s opinion is presented. Representatives are up for election once every two years and Senators every six years. This ensures that the members of Congress are up to date with issues as well as the peoples’ opinions. Whereas not every voting member of society can make it to the polls to vote, those that can still represent a big portion of the population. There are multiple polling stations across the districts so that no person has to travel an insane distance to vote. Also, online voting is available for those in the military or away from home at college so that they may still have a voice in their society. Gerrymandering, the strategic method of shaping a district to favor one group over another does occur, but due to its unlawfulness is often fixed as soon as it occurs. At the same time, there are enough members of Congress that faithfully voted based on the peoples’ opinions that any gerrymandered districts or members that vote against the public’s views are easily outnumbered. Less people voting on decisions allows for more decisions because a clearer majority is revealed. By having members of Congress be members of different boards, decisions are more immediately implemented by the boards in charge of them. The lack of mob rule coming from the whole population allows decisions to be more thought through. The representative democracy is more efficient because it gives a more accurate portrayal of the views of the population.

Thucydides 2.37.1

Blackwell, Christopher W. “The Assembly.” Diotima, www.stoa.org/projects/demos/article_assembly?page=2.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 600

Trump a tyrant? Maybe not…

About six months ago, CNN published an article about how President Trump was seemingly leading the U.S. down the path of tyranny. It’s argued that the checks and balances put in place guard against tyranny are failing under Trump’s reign. He “alter[s] policies and practices long established by law and treaty” ( Sachs, Jeffrey “Trump Is Taking US down the Path to Tyranny.” ) without regard to the checks and balances in the system. This shows that he’s doing what he thinks is best and not what might be best for the people. Without conference, Trump has taken matters into his own hands by meeting with Vladimir Putin, keeping information from the meeting secret, and then inviting him to Washington. To some, this would seem that Trump is a tyrant because he is blatantly disregarding the government system set in place. He runs the country with his best interest in mind over the people.

In today’s world, tyranny is seen as occurring when a ruler takes matters into their own hands. They single-handedly make decisions for their nation. Often times, they are viewed as having taken over their nation by force while keeping a tight grip on them to prevent rebellion from occurring. Modern definition would suggest that Trump is not a true tyrant. For one, he didn’t take over the government by force, he was voted into his position by the people. If anyone is to blame for his rise to presidency, it is the people because they were the ones who gave him his power. Additionally, he hasn’t forced any legislation on the country to quell people who disagree with his view points. He has made unpopular decisions without council that have isolated the U.S. further, but nothing that would suggest he is trying to take over everything.

According to the ancient world, a tyrant was someone outside of the hereditary monarchy who took over. By this definition, Trump is a tyrant. The U.S. is not in possession of a monarchy and hasn’t been since the colonial era. Due to this, it is not really possible to have a ruler that is in the hereditary monarchy. For example, Peisistratus was the first tyrant of Athens in Greece. He was not part of the monarchy, but was responsible for the unification of Attica and helping improve Athenian society.

Trump would be considered a tyrant purely because he is outside of the monarchy. By this definition though, all of the presidents were tyrants. The modern definition of tyrant has strayed too much from its original use. No longer do they stand for the good of a nation. Instead, they represent a nation’s downfall. In no uncertain terms, it can be concluded that Trump is not a modern day tyrant.

Sachs, Jeffrey. “Trump Is Taking US down the Path to Tyranny.” CNN, Cable News Network, 24 July 2018, http://www.cnn.com/2018/07/23/opinions/trump-is-taking-us-down-the-path-to-tyranny-sachs/index.html.

-Moira Camacho

Word count: 436