A radical, short-lived and violent experiment: the origins of democracy
By Mary Beard, a professor of classics at Cambridge University (THE GUARDIAN, 29/04/06):
In 427BCE the people of Athens voted, democratically, to put to death the entire adult male population of the town of Mytilene and to throw into slavery the women and children - thousands in all. As a punishment for changing sides in the great war between Athens and Sparta, this was brutal even by the permissive rules of ancient warfare. The next day the voters got cold feet.Meeting again, they reversed the decision, and sent a second message to their commander in the field, cancelling their earlier orders.… Seguir leyendo »