Lessons of History- Do We EVER Learn?

The more things change... 

I wonder if they had wifi, too...

Wow...first time I read it I did not see the cicero notation...and wa wondering who said it? A Dem or a Rep...but a Roman....we may be in trouble.

Amazing!  It seems we haven't made much progress in the last 2100 years.  I didn't realize people back then really had the same thought process about living on the public dole.

Dont forget that about 25% of the Roman population  was held in slavery . Do we really want to go back to a slave based economy?.... I know thats a stupid question, Of course we do...at least there are some that would like to see the rest of us slaves to the corporations that have been running our country

But there is some good news:  the budget deficit is going down....According to the Congressional budget Office, outlays this year are 2% less than last year and revenue is up 1%, and with the temporary  tax cuts passed 10 years ago about to expire, revenue should increase some more.  One of our foreign wars is winding down, and the other  has something of a deadline imposed to begin winding down. 

Cicero would be pleased. except for the work thing....perhaps we can learn from ancient Rome here too. They were big on public works projects as I recall. and we could use  new ways to generate electricity,  some infrastructure improvements and perhaps a few high speed trains.

Maybe you should send Cicero's quote to the gods of Washington.

And eventually Rome fell...

Was this after the great fire or before?  . . obviously Cicero was a wise man.

An in another quote from a contemporary of Cicero..."in our times we can neither endure our mistakes nor have the will to correct them."  I believe this one was from Pliny.

"the Treasury should be refilled"

Something else to consider; Cicero was dealing with REAL money, coined from real gold and most importantly, gold that citizens felt had real value. Today, we're dealing with an illusion of value based on faith called the fractional reserve banking system. The faith that the US government and markets will never fail. You can print all the paper money you want to refill the treasury under this system any time you want to. The rub is; Will the world accept it as truth? If things keep going the way they are, I think the answer to that question will eventually be NO. Today, technology is replacing workers at such a rapid pace that 20-30% unemployment may be the norm much sooner than we once thought. Add outsourcing to that equation and it's projected that within the next 10-20 years, over half the population in this country will no longer be needed to produce the goods and services required to sustain ourselves. What then? How will all of these people get the money required under our current system to buy the products and services they need to survive? That's the deeper question that all the so called experts don't seem to have an answer for. Two words: Be Prepared.

Carl S

Cicero, well we know what happened to Rome. There are multiltude of history lessons to be learned from our Founding Fathers right here in America, if the elected officials, both parties would take the time to read.

Annie, interesting how history has a way of repeating itself.

The more things change, the more they remain the same.

I relocated to Santa Fe, NM from Washington, DC sixteen years ago after living on Capitol Hill for a quarter of a century. Back then I was amazed how people could expect many of my neighbors aka elected officials or their staff to solve any problems. For the most part, their focus was the next election and money. Only a handful had the courage and commitment to make a difference.

Unfortunately, many of us have forgotten how to make a difference in our local communities and expect government to solve everything. We have given away our power in many ways but expecting someone else to fix things.

It is fascinating how with all progress man has made in medicine, technology, physics, psychology, and science in general, especially in the last century, we have not yet found a cure for arrogance. Arrogance and belkileving you are better, smarter, more deserving, is one of the key factors that keep us from learning from our past.

If most households can balance their budget by working and spending less and saving more, why can't our leaders. Aren't they supposed to be experts?

Truly ahead of his time.  If only this advice were taken by our local, state and federal governments.

Unfortunately, history will always repeat itself.  It is simply manifested in very different ways.  The same way every great empire will eventually fall.  Hence, the US will not be THE power forever, but our current International system allows us to align with others to create a multi-national power.

Annie,

I am posting this on my facebook account, awesome job!

-Brent

It's often said that history repeats itself.  It also seems to me that we continue to live by Einstein's definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

In answer to your question, no I don't think we learn.

An excellent quote to have found right now, thank you for sharing.  History has repeated itself time and time again because of ego, arrogance and lack of a sense of history.  How does this lesson instruct us in our real estate business today?  Thanks for such a great quote for us to think about between calls.