Chapters 2-6

Again Strayer's point of view comes through in the reading. He wrote, "...the fall of the mighty seems somehow satisfying, perhaps even a delayed form of justice." (P.118) He wrote that after explaining that perhaps that satisfaction comes from the probability that the mighty societies were built on the backs and at the cost of many lives. Although I can understand that line of thinking, also can see that great benefit often comes because of mighty civilization. Major advancements in science, technology, medicine, and other quality of life improvements have resulted directly from the existence of civilizations. Strayer's politics were also revealed later in the reading, on pages 229-231 when he discussed slavery and its relationship to civilizations. He wrote about the forceful subjugation of populations and kidnapping as a method of obtaining slaves, but he neglected to mention the occasions where slaves were given as an item of trade.

Strayer wrote about a part of the ancient Greek code that really resonated with me was the equality of all citizens before the law. I believe this to be a critical aspect of a truly civilized group. There is no room for unequal treatment of individuals, by government, in a society. This is an area where there can be no room for exception. If even one group of people, or even one individual, can be targeted by the government, at a minimum, the seeds are sown for revolution. A greater danger is that any allowance for subjugation of an individual, by the government, is a slippery slope that inevitably leads to full oppression.

Another part of the reading that I found interesting was the principle of Dharma which calls for people to perform their duties without regard for themselves. That seems to be an good way to look at things. While I can't advocate for it wholly, at least as a highly considered virtue, it seems to be an effective way of going about ones work. Further, adherence to this motivation would likely remove the political aspect of work. Inner office politics are detrimental to the overall performance and create all sorts of problems. Working solely for the work and not for personal advancement or gain would drastically reduce these types of issues.

Something that has been a theme in the reading so far, and something that I am curious about, is why and how the different groups of people, some of whom had little to no contact with other groups, developed similar manners at similar times.