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How Ancient Greek Historians Predicted Putin
Back in my days at university, we had to read — as most political science students do — Thucydides’, The Landmark Thucydides a Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War. Reading Thucydides is the passageway to international relations and foreign policy.
Everyone is made familiar with Thucydides’ concept of the strong overpowering the weak due to their self-interest.
In many ways, Thucydides predicted that stability in the 21st century is hard-won and should not be taken for granted.
Many — including myself — never thought that war on this scale would come back to Europe. We needed to be reminded of the fact that the human condition does not change and that self-interest reigns. With the help of Thucydides, I’ll show you why.
“The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” — Thucydides
In Book Three of The Landmark, the Mytilenians rebel against Athens. The Athenian politicians, Cleon and Diodotus, argue for and against the proposal that Mytilenians deserve the death penalty for this treason.
Cleon infamously argues for justice in the form of capital punishment since the Mytilenians rebelled against them and the penalty for rebellion is death.
