Fuck the timing of family vacations (but I’d feel bad if I refused to visit my great-uncles who are in poor health and getting long in the tooth)

Ukrainian flag at 87,210, it looks like!

Ukrainian flag at 87,210!

Because they INVENTED THE DOME

More seriously, empires of the past are often fascinating because of the combination of traits they display in tandem with the diverse ways they can be examined, both positively and negatively.

Empires of the past are, typically, relatively well-recorded and demonstrate a wide array of the capabilities of humankind when well-organized. Obviously, for people who like the funny little fellows with weapons and armor, empires are always fun, because you kind of fucking die if you’re an empire which can’t marshal decent military forces; but empires have a vast array of appeal beyond that. The organizational and government complexity of the Inca providing both benefits and obligations; the insistent lawgiving of the Romans; the architectural marvels of the Egyptians; the intense artistic patronage of the Hellenic empires; the rise of theory of government in Han China; the trading instruments of the British Empire; and so on.

And these aren’t limited to the stated, nor does one need to restrain oneself to thinking about one. Think about the architecture of the Romans and the lawgiving of the Inca, or the art of Han China and government theory in the Hellenic Empires - in both cases, you’ll find plenty of fascinating material. There’s always something to learn, with beauty, horror, and most consistently, fascinating insight into the myriad ways human beings see ourselves and execute great undertakings.

It’s funny, because the Greeks and Romans both regarded the Pyramids as exemplary demonstrations of Egyptian architectural ingenuity, and thought it reflected very highly on the Egyptians to have made them - at least on a technical level.

The Roman writer Frontinus, in typical Roman fashion, admits it (and, for good measure, also the works of the Greeks) are impressive but impractical, and thus inferior to GOOD HONEST ROMAN ARCHITECTURE which does practical things like bringing water or giving public spaces for plays (please ignore all the useless Roman monuments).

Very cool pieces of history!

The fall of bespoke letter commissions was a disaster for the human race 😔

I live to serve!

(though honestly I don’t think about the Galactic Empire that much - nice stormtroopers, but that’s about it for me)

“Just cry harder, liberals are as bad as fascists” - acceptable, normal

[mocking this view] - UNACCEPTABLE, rude, how dare you be this unproductive 😭

Fucking listen to yourself, and maybe reflect on who and what you choose to tone police.

Nah, Russia just finally decided to scrap the old Kuznetsov. End of an era (of the Kuznetsov being tugged around and randomly catching fire even in peacetime)

Yes Cassian, this imperial sympathizer right here

http://www.cesatiecesati.com/un-vassoio-napoletano-in-tartaruga-pique/

“YOU WERE ALWAYS MEANT TO BE THE SUPERIOR FELINE”

5

I mean, on one hand, yes; on the other hand, if the ship wasn’t already in massive disrepair, it would be much cheaper to train even an entire crew than scrap the ship.

I wish I could say I was surprised.

One of many causes, but yes.

Work often persisted after a pharaoh’s death. These damn architects are never on-time and on-budget!

http://www.cesatiecesati.com/una-raffinata-bilancia-da-orafo/

Damn, Civ 7 was no good? I haven’t heard anything about it yet.