The Rise of Commodus II

[Disaffected]

The Gladiator Games of the American Caesar
Charlie Angus / The Resistance
Jun 17

"When Aelius Lampridius set out to write a history of Caesar Augustus, he had nothing positive to say about the reign of Commodus:

“Even from his earliest years, he was base and dishonorable, cruel and lewd, defiled of mouth, moreover, and debauched.”

Augustus founded the Roman Empire after the destruction of the Republic. The belief was that a strongman ruler would bring order out of the chaos of the Republican government. In the end, it gave the power to the likes of Nero, Caligula and Commodus.

I found this quote over a year ago as I was trying to make sense of the Trump ascendency. It seemed to so perfectly encapsulate the story of Donald Trump. I had been writing about Trump’s gangster nature and his growing fascist tendencies, but there was something else about his reign that stood out from other spin dictators. I called him the new Commodus because he relished the spectacle of cruelty and humiliation."

https://charlieangus.substack.com/p/the-gladiator-games-of-the-american