Posted by
Augsal on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 7:43:38 PM
Since the Latin language is making somewhat of a comeback in the Catholic Church, for which I am absolutely ecstatic, I thought I would pay homage by using a very famous Latin phrase- Carthago Delenda Est as the title of my blog today. These were the words spoken by the Roman General Scipio Africanus after the final defeat of Carthage in the 2nd century BC. Translated into English it reads Carthage is defeated or Carthage is no more.
The Punic Wars between the Rome and Carthage has significance to us today. In fact the significance is overwhelmng. A little background on the Punic Wars. Rome was the new upcoming power in the Mediteranean at the time of the mid 2nd century BC. The real power in the region was the Carthaginian Empire ruled by the descendants of the ancient Phoenicians hence the name "Punic" as the Romans called them the "Poenici." The Carthaginians had gained control of all of Spain, North Africa and were attempting to expand into Sicily. The Romans took this as a threat and so the clash of Titans began. We all know the amazing stories of Hannibal and his exploits against the Romans. The elephants crossing the Alps and so on, but after all his victories- and they were many, he was never able to conquer Rome. This is what is pretty much forgotten about the Punic Wars- after so many defeats, and the restructuring of the Roman Army the Romans defeated Carthage and their destruction was made certain at the end of this incredible struggle of empires. After burning Carthage to the ground and almost killing all living creatures- men, women, children and livstock- Salt was poured over the ground so that nothing would ever grow or live there again- Carthago Delenda Est! Why such a powerful gesture you ask? And why am I talking about this anyway? Well, if I haven't already put you to sleep yet, and you've followed me this far, I am going to explain the relevance and significance in my following paragraphs.
Rome and Carthage were two great empires, the Roman Empire just beginning to exert itself while the Carhaginian Empire was "The" power at the time, controlling the Mediteranean basin. But their was something much more important which pitted these two empires against each other and that something was "Culture and Religion." Rome practiced a religion derived from the Greeks, and a culture influence by the likes of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle and ideas of democracy. The Roman Senate and the Twelve Tablets are ideas and laws handed down to us. We are the children of Greece and Rome. The Carthaginians were descendants of the Phoenicians- the ancient inhabitants of the Middle East and descendants themselves of the Philistines and Syrians. This culture was heavily dominated by a religion which had at its heart the sacrifice of humans, infants and children to be exact. This was the religion of ancient Phoenicia- the worship of the god Baal. Hannibal's name has as its suffix "bal" which honors the god Baal. In fact Hannibal's younger brother was sacrificed to Baal while Hannibal watched with his own eyes. The method of sacrifice was to cast the helpless, innocent victims into a furnace. Enough said- the realities of these atrocities frightened the Romans into an all out war of survival against these "savage" people of Northern Africa. Are you beginning to see the connection? I hope so, because the world, OUR World is in a war of survival against a culture which practices the slaughter of innocents in the name of god. They speak of "washing themselves in the blood of the infidel Christians and Jews." (This is an exact quote from a 5 year old Palestinian girl viewed and heard by this writer in a Fox News Special). The Romans after many setbacks and several thousand dead actually reformed their army into the military machine which would go on to build one of the greatest empires in the history of the world. There was no surrender in the Roman Senate because they new their very survival was at stake. Is our US Senate as determined? We are in a war which will decide the fate of our country, and our culture. Even now, we are seeing court cases and other attempts by Muslim adherents to impose their Islamic laws and practices into our lives. The Imams at the Minneapolis airport praying and deliberately acting provocatively to get themselves kicked off a plane simply to file lawsuits and tying up the courts. Just yesterday in Italy two Arab Princesses from Qatar on a British Airways flight refused to sit next to men they did not know. After a three hour delay they were kicked off the flight amidst great applause. In Florida, last year Muslim women wanted to take their drivers license photo while wearing a hooded Burkha. Is this absurd or what? Make no mistake that Muslims worldwide are becoming emboldened to impose their beliefs at every chance given them. They see the West as timid and further weakened by their adherence to laws such as free speech and freedom of worship. Ten years ago, lawsuits and actions such as these would have never taken place. What has changed then over the last ten years which has emboldened these people to behave so arrogantly? Well, I will tell you what has happened- The rise of militant Islam and the complete silence to the terro by the Islamic clergy and majority of Muslims in general which infers tacit approval of these so-called extremist Muslims. I say that Islam is the problem. It is a faith which rejects all tenets of our Western beliefs and practices. They kill innocents in the name of God, they love death and embrace it with a zeal which is chilling. But still what do I hear from government represenatives- surrender!
We must be as determined as our Roman ancestors were in their fight against a sick and depraved culture of death.The election of our next President will decide the fate of our nation and most likely Western culture as well. With all our flaws, the United States is still the "Best Hope for the World" as Dr. Bill Bennett so correctly put it. Here is one American who hopes that someday we will hear the words "Islamo-Fascista delenda est!" but for now I will take "Hillary Clinton delenda Est!!!!"