At some point during the ninth century A.D., a young man named Michael (through the machinations and duplicitousness of his uncle) was thrust onto the throne of the Byzantine Empire. Michael had a buddy named Basilius, from peasant stock who worked in the horse stables, and Basilius – right place, right time – saved Michael …
book reviews
Law 1 – “Never Outshine the Master”
Methinks excellence shall inevitably be punished. How very disheartening. In mid-1660’s France, there lived two very vain men … Nicolas Fouquet, and King Louis XIV. Both loved money, and ostentation, and spectacle, but only one could punish the other for his preference. Bit of a backstory: someone high up in the king’s cabinet died, and …
Let the Bloodletting Begin
A while ago I started reading Robert Greene’s “48 Laws of Power” and have to say … mucho disturbio. Is the world really this corrupt? Are people really this horrible? Am I really that naïve? It appears the answer to all of those questions is a resounding “Yes!” Sigh. Well, the banality of evil is a …