What do you prefer to talk about?

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I do not like small talk. Do you?

I use to like talking about the weather, living where I do now its not a big topic of discussion. Politics are a special interest of mine, I have my views but I like to follow it like a sport almost as well.

The merits of the canonical Traveller timeline (Dulinor assassinates Strephon, Rebellion ensues. Virus unleashed, et cetera), versus alternative Traveller timelines (Dulinor has a fatal "accident", Strephon institutes reforms, Zombie plague spreads and is later contained, et cetera).

Definitely Plato's Symposium or Cicero's Dialogues. But pretty much no one has any serious interest in classical philosophy.

the closer to physical home, southern california the more i can say. obviously.

weather patterns and climate i don't mind having a discussion about, it's rather more interesting than some give it credit for as a blatantly stock topic. so.....how about that drought? those showers last week?

Everything is essentially political, even religion and philosophy, so I'll go with politics.

Everything is essentially political, even religion and philosophy, so I'll go with politics.

I hate politics. I prefer talking about heaven and ways to make earth more like heaven.

But that, too, can be construed as political.

I don't like politics.

Was Caligula really bad guy? Maybe he was just in a vulnerable position and played the lunatic in order that people fear him. Or, maybe a lot of what we know of him was just slander put out by his political opponents.

That's an understatement. Its considered subversive by the powers at be. And the "making earth more like Heaven" part is considered heretical by the church.

Philosophy and thought experiments--that's why I love science fiction. The best SF is usually just disguised thought experiment.

I also like discussing sociology, moral philosophy, and public policy. I guess most of that falls under the category of politics/political economy.

I think there's pretty good evidence to support the idea that Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus--or Bootsie to his "friends"--actually got sick (most likely with encephalitis) suffered from brain damage and "went mad."

If you want to talk about an Emperor who suffered from political slander, his uncle Tiberius is probably a better choice.

*just my opinion as a Roman history obsessive.

I was a history major back in my college days, specializing in the Roman period, and I very much concur with you.

Cool. When I first started back to school, that was my intention as well. Then I discovered that I wouldn't really be satisfied unless I got a PhD. and a tenured position somewhere... However, that would have required fluency in Latin, Geek, and a whole lot of hard work AND even more luck...

I met too many brilliant History PhD.'s teaching survey classes as adjunct professors at community college.

One of my favorites was a former CIA field agent and assistant national security advisor to Bush I... He taught Western Civ part time.

There just aren't many prospects for a history major unless you're a pop history rockstar like David McCullough or Eric Foner...

So, I switched majors. I'm not too sad about it.

oh-kay...... then our discourse here on PP&R possibly could be encapsulated as a war between those who like hell versus those who like heaven? what a bucket of worms that could create.