The folly of war
The Telegram (May 9th) compared Donald Trump to Caligula. As Caligula never started a war it would be more appropriate to compare Mr Trump to another Roman leader, Marcus Licinius Crassus. Crassus was a real-estate tycoon who made his fortune by buying the properties of those purged after a civil war. Frustrated that he had not received the credit he thought was his for having quelled Spartacus’s slave revolt, he was eager to gain glory through a victory against a “real” enemy. With the help of his buddies in the triumvirate, Caesar and Pompey, he got his chance in 53BC. Crassus was assigned to subdue Parthia, an empire that covered today’s Iraq and Iran. Ignoring advice from his generals, Crassus rushed headlong into the desert and the Parthian armoured cavalry, resulting in one of the largest defeats suffered by a Roman army. The Parthians cut off his head and poured molten gold into his mouth.
PAUL VANDERBROECK [Letter from a Reader of The Economist]
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Trump's BEAUTIFUL FINAL deadlines have a BIG mortality rate
- Trump initially gave Iran a deadline to reopen the Strait.
- He extended that deadline once rather than acting.
- He extended it again by about 10 days, saying he was pausing military action while giving diplomacy another chance.
- Today he issued a final 48-hour deadline, warning, «A whole civilization will die tonight».