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December 30, 2005
Alaskan in Exile
by Neil Zawicki

    A lost Roman soldier stumbled into monarchy in the third century, A.D.

    He was wandering home, somewhere in central Britain, after his legion had disbanded with the news that the Roman Empire had collapsed. Along the way, he ran across a lawless village and was asked by the inhabitants to protect them from thieves and raiders. He accepted the job and got the best house in the village, raised a band of “deputies” and proceeded to declare his offspring the heirs to his rule.

    And so it goes.

    The Roman Empire’s demise gave way to what became known as “The Dark Ages.” Kings and Queens held power and kept their subjects in a superstitious fear coma for generations, while little bands of monks made beer, kept notes and maintained the calendar for future civilizations. The Renaissance marked the end of the Dark Ages, and brought new thinking and new technology, and people started once again to use their imaginations.

    The fall of Rome could not have been a pretty thing for the citizens of the empire’s capitol. To hold off the massing barbarians that had laid siege on the city, Romans frantically built barricades out of statues taken from all parts of the metropolis, while senators ran around begging them to stop, trying in vain to retain the very substance that made their once great society.

    These days, some American senators are trying to preserve our constitution and our laws – the very substance of our society – as our leaders tear them apart in the name of defense against terrorists – the new barbarians.

    Meanwhile, our legions walk the dusty streets of broken nations all over the world, and will not by any estimation be coming back to the capitol of the empire any time soon.

    The Romans were stretched quite thin toward the end of their rule. About 500,000 soldiers defended the extreme edges of the empire. Retrospect reveals a force of about 3 million was necessary.

    The standard issue basic weapon for the Romans was the short sword. It was their M-16 rifle. Roman soldiers also had superb armor and tactics, and all the money, horses and supplies they needed.

    Despite their wealth and reach, the rest of the world eventually ganged up and defeated them.

    What will become of modern society when the American Empire falls? When will it happen? I give it another 150 years, tops.

    Then what? What new ruling system will spawn from the ashes? Perhaps a thousand years from now, children will read in their history books:

    “A lost American soldier stumbled in monarchy in the 22nd century A.D….”




 




   


























 
Neil Zawicki, exiled Alaskan, is Editor at Large for Insurgent49, a former reporter for the Alaska Star, and winner of the Alaska Press Club's 'Best Columnist' award. He is now living out the rest of his days in an undisclosed location in Oregon. He can be contacted at -  neil@insurgent49.com
- Columnists -

Editor's Desk
by Aaron Selbig

Red Alert
by Soren Wuerth

Alaskan In Exile
by Neil Zawicki

The
Bramble Bush
by Kevin Morford





- also by this writer -
Copyright 2005 Insurgent Media. All Rights Reserved.
in-sur-gent (in sur'jent), n. 1. a member of a group which revolts against the policies of its leadership.