I’ve been doing a lot of research on the jesters of antiquity and Medieval times.  In the course of that reading, I’ve gotten to take a peak into different times and conditions under which human beings lived.

One hard truth that has struck me is how much worse things could be.

And here, I suppose I’m speaking in terms of our increasing political divide.  Things seem bad right now.  Some people believe we are on the precipice of a greater conflict.  I certainly hope not.

Yet existence permits so much more than our culture norms usually allow.  To be obnoxious at a party is a paltry offense compared to the cruelty of mankind. What history teachers us is that the world can be infinitely terrible if we allow it to be.

Consider this section from Suetonius’  The Twelve Caesars on the reign of Tiberius: