Amongst the Thugs / Class is everything

Parenti's People's History of Rome is brilliant. There are so many parts of history that I have absolutely no clue about. Even the military history to me is hazy. This book- which @ my glacial pace means I'll finish it soon, but not yet- is totally class conscious. Parenti rips into both the classical authors--esp Cicero-- who were lap dogs of the upper class (thinklaughable lap dogs like that clownish drug addict on the radio- what's its name??), as well as the upper class of rome. As well, he rips into the modern day historians who parrot the old lap dogs.

Ah, this is the type of history I like to read. Too often, unless ones knows the economic and social contexts, all of history becomes clear. I will admidt, that prior to my first masters , even though I read history my whole life and grew up working class, I never had any class conciousness. I can remember being in a university class in the 198o's and listening to a pre class discussion betwixt some students and the prof. It was on Central America, and I remember the student actually saying "Well, I'm gonna trust the word of Ronald Reagan over the word of Danial Ortega" and I though "Your right." Ouch, yes ; but because I broadcast this to the world, I'm not particularrly upset that I wasn't class concious at that age.

That all came in my first ride through grad school. My absolute first class was with the greatest teacher of humans ever, Dr. Marvin Rosen: I first learned about History. Forget all those books I read before; I now had a tool in which to understand things. A lot of people who went through the program -- Jimie Tree would be one, and others I met through the Young Guard-- had the same esteem for this man. This teacher. It'd be great @ parties laughing and joking and swapping stories about him. Amazing influence.

Sad thing about it is is that he committed sucicide a few years back. What a fucking crock!! This guy had so many more lives to touch. I must admidt that as a member of the world, I feel cheated-- so many more enlightened ones that should be walking around, but no. I must admidt, he was the one who

However, I guess he's passed that on to us. A real dig deal by my going into secondary education- my whole career, basically- was to teach them what he taught me, and release them. Haven't been quite as successful as Marvin, but I'm trying. Marvin, a communist- has made me a better Catholic by teaching me about class. Believe me, I so deeply enjoy the word of our teacher Jesus understood correctly through what our other teacher- Marvin- has taught us.