Rachel Martin

And that was always a great time.

I guess you just said there's a natural relationship between people who are interested in Latin and political affairs.

And I was someone who was very interested in politics and international governance.

And I'm 0% interested in studying Latin, Tim.

So make this connection for me.

What was it about the classics when you were like, whatever, 15 years old?

You're like, yes, Latin.

So, in terms of your response, what I didn't say is that people interested in politics and international relations are invariably going to be interested in classics.

It's more the other way around.

At that time, and I don't think this is as true anymore, if you were studying Latin, you mainly read beginner texts that

by Tacitus, Livy, and Julius Caesar.

And all of those texts were either about military exploits or Roman history.

If you remained interested in Latin, you usually weren't bored by reading about the military and politics in ancient Rome.

And so, therefore, you were probably interested in current affairs.

I'm giggling because did you catch this little cultural moment when there was a lot going around on the internet about how a certain type of man, when left to his own devices and when he's just sitting in a state of emptiness, the thing that came into his mind in this prototype of a man is the Roman Empire.

And that this is what men think about constantly, even if they're not conscious of it.

That the rise and fall of empires and thinking about the military exploits of the Roman Empire in particular is what preoccupies men's minds.

I'm embarrassed to say that I've done no reading on this topic.

I was completely unaware of it.

Because you just are it.