Morea

The book says, 'the beauty of Greece is in its contrast'. While there are parts of it which is a continuous swath of land, the rest consists of islands and peninsulas. The Peloponnese in ancient times was called the 'Morea'. Right in almost the center is the Valle of Sparta where today's modern city, Sparta is. While most of the Peloponnese is hilly and rugged, the Valle of Sparta is a small area of flatland where in ancient Mycenaean times, the loveliest of women, Helen lived and reigned till she eloped to Troy. In those days, education for everyone including women was militaristic and in times of war, Spartan women took over. Sparta was the only place that needed no fortification because the Spartans including Spartan women were a magnificent fighting machine. They were the envy of the Athenians, they fought and won over the Athenians but the success brought home all kinds of 'booty' which eventually corrupted them and they lost their military luster and became a conquered people since than.
Why dwell in ancient history? Sometimes we can learn so much from history. It was 'bread and circuses' that brought down the Roman empire. It was the same with the great Spartans but the word 'spartan' lives on today and that word could save us. The bible says, 'gird up your loin' arm yourself with the mighty sword which is the spirit of God, the word of God.
Today our politicians are a bunch of wimps with no gumption to tackle the problems of the state and our bankers are a bunch of looters abdicating their fiduciary duty. Maybe we should all go back to our history books to learn what makes a nation great and what brings down nations. Or else we will end up in the dust heap of history.