[geeks] Glad I don't live in Texas!

[dave at cca.org]

dittman at dittman.net writes:

>> Interestingly, the biggest reason for the fall was probably the
>> slow degredation of the process of succesion into a (usually
>> bloody) power-grab, every time a new emperor was chosen.

>The Roman people were complacent as most of them were well-fed and
>entertained.  They didn't care what happened in the government as
>long as they were happy.

But during the decline, the increased frequency of civil wars 
started to get very expensive, which means high taxes.

Cleverly, Rome never taxed residents of Italy proper, so the
local population was always a bit happier. (Oh yeah - and
free grain for residents of the city of Rome? I don't recall 
the exact details. That got to be a major burden on the rest
of the tax-paying empire after a while.)

------ David Fischer ------- dave at cca.org ------- http://www.cca.org ------
----- Being poked in the eye with a sharp stick makes baby jesus cry! -----