On Sep 29, 2008, at 8:19 PM, James Heartfield wrote:
> Isn't this the time for some right-wing populist to revive the Roman
> plebeian demand to cancel all debts?
>
The precedent is misplaced. In the Roman Republic, debt cancellation
was typically the demand of indebted patricians like Catalina.
The right precedents are Leviticus and Solon--above all, Solon. American Senators like to portray themselves as Solons!
> Tear up the credit card bills and the mortgage repayments, and tell
> the banks to go to hell.
>
> That way you could rally overspent Americans in a chauvinist
> campaign against Wall Street and the Chinese lenders.
What's "chauvinist" about a campaign against "Wall Street?" The Chinese predominently lend to the US govt., not--even indirectly--to indebted consumers and homeowners.
Shane Mage
"Thunderbolt steers all things...it consents and does not consent to be called Zeus."
Herakleitos of Ephesos