35. Liberty or Equality? Part IV: THE MELIAN DIALOGUE: Isonomy, Aristophanes & The Battle of Mosul

Liberty or Equality? Pt. IV THE MELIAN DIALOGUE: Isonomy, Aristophanes, and the Battle of Mosul **For Sources, links, and text, pls visit: (http://www.culture-anarchy.com/public_html/pages/wpblog/?p=75) Reports from THE INDEPENDENT by Patrick Cockburn are pushing the upper bounds of the civilian death toll in Mosul up to 40,000. Previous estimates (5K) were based on aerial bombings, due to the inability to scour the rubble while ISIS was still operating. Now that the ground view is opening up, the carnage tells another tale. This week we look into Hayek's thoughts on the liberties of the ancient world, where the ideal of Isonomy and the drive for political equality resulted in democratic governance. We introduce these concepts through the lens of Aristophanes's comedy, THE BIRDS, and the proceed to discuss two passages from THE HISTORY OF THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR by Thucydides: The Mitylenean Revolt and the Melian Dialogue. **Featuring music from the Cello Sonata in D Major, by Pietro Locatelli; performed by Elizaveta Sushchenko. Provided by a Creative Commons license courtesy of Musopen.org: (https://musopen.org/music/performer/elizaveta-sushchenko/). Also, featuring tracks by the Passion Hifi (https://soundcloud.com/freehiphopbeatsforyou): Cold Heat, I Close My Eyes, and Untouchable. Audio from A King in New York, a Charlie Chaplin film, provided with the expressed permission of Roy Export S.A.S. (www.charliechaplin.com), who holds the copyright thereto. Also featuring music from Isaac Albeniz https://musopen.org/music/composer/isaac-albeniz/) and Haydn. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/culture-anarchy/support