American Civics: The Story of All of Us

Week of November 4, 2024

As Rome's dominance spreads around Europe and North Africa, across the Mediterranean Sea in the Roman province of Judaea, the seeds of the destruction of Imperial Rome are planted. A young, Palestinian Jew named Yeshua preaches a radical message of brotherhood and fellowship that slowly takes hold in this backwater of the empire. Arrested, tried, and convicted as a common criminal against the peace of Rome, Yeshua is executed on the cross. But it is the circumstances surrounding his death that set fire to the imagination of the western world. What begins as a simple code of ethics for living as a good and decent human being develops into a full-scale revolution that turns the Roman Empire on itself. Within three hundred years, the entire western world knows the name of the Jewish rebel...but because of the Hellenization of the world under Alexander, it is his Greek name that catches on: Jesus. His followers bring down the Roman Empire and set in motion the formation of the medieval and modern world.

On the second anniversary of my Mom’s death, and on All Saints Day - a holiday which has taken on a special meaning to me - my sixth graders honored me with my fourth Faculty Member of the Month Award.

To my incredible sixth graders, I am so extraordinarily proud of you and I love you all so much. You all are the best students in the United States.

The Empire of Dreams wishes all of our friends of the Hindu faith and various Asian Cultures that celebrate a joyous Diwali!

www.hindustantimes.com

Thursday, October 31, 2024 - "Shadows of the Empire, Part I: Fall of the Republic": Rome stands alone as masters of the Mediterranean, but is the republic ready for one of the most ambitious men in world history to step onto the stage? Julius Caesar enters during one of the most dangerous times in the republic's history. A series of ambitious men have come before him that have made a series of reforms that the people see as heroic and the Senate sees a dangerous. Caesar has conquered Gaul, expanded the borders of the republic, brought wealth and riches to Rome. But the Senate sees him as a tyrant and a king in the making. When the Senate orders Caesar to stand down, Caesar responds with war. The Republic plunges into darkness, and Caesar emerges triumphant. Hailed as dictator for life, Caesar appears unstoppable, until he pays a fateful visit to the Senate on Capitoline Hill...

My dear sweet Mom - it has been two years since you left. I miss your voice, our daily phone calls on my drive home from work, and Sunday dinners at your house. I want you to know how much I miss you. But I made it back to the Sea of Galilee. I lit candles for you and Dad inside the tomb of Jesus Christ at the Church of the Holy Sepuchre. I stood on top of the Acropolis in the city of Athens at the Parthenon and saw where Saint Paul preached. I followed in the footsteps of Dad and climbed the Great Pyramid of Giza. I have a new aunt in Tel Aviv, a new sister in Cairo, and new friends all over the islands of Mykonos, Patmos, and Crete.

Thank you for setting my feet upon the path of knowledge. I love you so much and I will see you again someday.

But not yet. 🫡

Tuesday, October, 29, 2024 - "Hannibal the Annihilator: A Tale of Two Cities": Before the Red Sox and Yankees, before Ohio State and Michigan, before Army and Navy, before Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant, there were the original rivals...Rome and Carthage. These are two nations who definitely DO NOT like each other. They will fight three epic wars that will determine the fate of the world. It is the unstoppable force of Carthage against the immovable object that is Rome. Let's get ready to rumble!

Monday, October 28, 2024 - "The Eternal City": The very name conjures images of empire and glory. Rome, the eternal city, founded in legend by the survivors of the Trojan War, establishes a new system of government called republican government. Rome is the foundation for government in Europe, the United States, and government throughout the world. Roman values, ideas, and culture survive to this very day. See the foundation for the west begin on the seven legendary hills of Rome.

Week of October 28, 2024

The battle between republicanism and tyranny comes to a head in Rome. After the Punic Wars, Rome stands as masters of the Mediterranean World. But can the republic withstand the glory and might of Julius Caesar? To the people of Rome, Caesar is a hero, the conqueror of Gaul, and defender of the common man. To the Senate of Rome, he is a tyrant with dangerous ambitions that go beyond monarchy and into the realm of dictatorship. Caesar sees himself as the savior of the republic, one attempting save the republic from a tyrannical and oppressive Senate. One way or another, war will come. The fate of the republic and the western world hangs in the balance. We're crossing the Rubicon and we're not looking back!

Friday, October 25, 2024 - "To the End of the World and the Great Outer Sea": The greatest tactician to rise from legendary Greece isn't even Greek at all. The Macedonian general Alexander conquers the known world all by the age of 30, and spreads the vision and ideals of Greece throughout the Mediterranean. But it is on the battlefield that he distinguishes himself as one of the greatest military commanders in human history. Follow Alexander's rise to glory as he faces off against the Persian Empire in a final, climactic showdown that changes the face of politics and the course of world history and watch as Alexander unleashes some of the most brilliant tactics ever devised on the Army of India.

Thursday, October 24, 2024 - "Jason and the Argonauts, Part II": We break out the popcorn and treats for the ultimate movie experience and watch one of the original sword-and-sandal epics from the golden age of Hollywood. Projected in HD on the big screen with surround sound, join us as we watch the classic Ray Harryhausen film Jason and the Argonauts.

Tuesday, October 22, 2024 - "Iron Men": Rogue pirates plunder the Mediterranean coast, signaling ongoing conflict between newly emerging societies. But the discovery of iron and its incredible uses helps mankind create new ways of life. Armed with metal tools, humans construct new societies and amazing vessels. Early forms of government, including democracy in Athens, help guide us. Humans develop monotheistic religions including Judaism, Christianity and Islam. People power shapes the world, as warfare continues to divide us. Join Mr. Staten, Academy Award Nominee Josh Brolin, and the scholars of the History Channel for episode two, Iron Men, of Mankind: The Story of All of Us.

Monday, October 21, 2024 - "The Golden Age of Athens": Master statesman Pericles heralds a new age of glory for Athens. It is an age of theatre, arts, philosophy, and a new age of thinking about the universe, the world, government, and the state of man. The golden age of Athens is the very definition of what we think of when we envision Classical Greece. From the glory of the Acropolis and the Parthenon to the philosophy of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, the Golden Age is a time to remember. But while Athens stands alone as masters of the Aegean world, her neighbors cast a wary eye upon her rising power. When Athens goes too far in demanding tribute from the other city-states, Sparta vows to take on their hated rivals and teach them a lesson. A young historian named Thucydides records the destructive conflict in his "History of the Peloponnesian War." It is a fatal mistake that will leave Greece vulnerable to a new nation-state that sits on the horizon...

Week of October 21, 2024

"To the End of the World and the Great Outer Sea." This was the motto of one of the most tactically gifted and brilliant commanders in human history: Alexander the Great of Macedonia, who conquered the massive Persian Empire in four decisive battles. The transition of power from the Ancient World of the Near East to the classical world of Greece and Rome after the battles of Marathon and Thermopylae concludes with the triumph of Alexander and the spread of Greek culture through the Hellenization of the world.

Friday, October 18, 2024 - "Jason and the Argonauts": Join Mr. Staten as we break out the popcorn and treats for the ultimate movie experience and watch one of the original sword-and-sandal epics from the golden age of Hollywood. Projected in HD on the big screen with surround sound, join us in a special adventure, dedicated to my Dad, as we watch the classic Ray Harryhausen film Jason and the Argonauts.

Thursday, October 17, 2024 - "The Legendary Journeys": These are the stories of a time long ago; a time of myth and legend. It is a time when the ancient gods of Greece plagued mankind with suffering. Only an elite few dared to challenge their power: the sixth graders of Mr. Staten's American Civics class! Join us, in a special lesson dedicated to my Mom, as we explore the Titanomachy and the legendary heroes of Greece including Perseus, Hercules, and Atalanta as we rewrite history and make our own legendary journey through time!

It was such a blessing this summer to go see many of the artifacts before they moved to the new Grand Egyptian Museum. I cannot wait to go back to Cairo and see it when it is finished! ✊🏿

700,000 years of Egyptian history finds enormous new home The public has finally been allowed to visit part of the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is the size of 80 football fields.

Leave it alone!

Secret underground tomb with 12 skeletons is found in Jordan's Petra Researchers who used ground-penetrating radar also discovered an extensive array of grave offerings beneath the ancient Treasury building.

Tuesday, October 15, 2024 - "The Last Stand of the 300, Part II": Follow Leonidas, the 300 Spartans, Mr. Staten, and the scholars of the History Channel on their epic path to glory at the historic Battle of Thermopylae. Learn about the tactics, weapons, and strategies of Themistocles and the Athenian Navy as we fight in the Artemesium Straits and stare down the full might of the Persian Empire! Join Leonidas as he holds off a colossal Persian attack. When Persian arrows block out the sun, we will fight in the shade. Xerxes makes his final push to destroy Athens while we join Leonidas and the 300 on their last stand for glory. When Persia demands we lay down our shields, join the call of no surrender and no retreat in the conclusion of The Last Stand of the 300.

Week of October 15, 2024: SPARTANS!!! PREPARE FOR GLORY!!! The unstoppable might of the Persian Empire crashes into the infant democracy of Athens. In one of the most pivotal battles in human history, the small city-state of Athens faces off alone against the Persian Empire on the desolate plains of Marathon. Miltiades and 11,000 Athenians are the last line of defense. Yet their heroism pales in comparison to the glorious stand of Leonidas and the 300 Spartans at Thermopylae. For three days, Leonidas, the 300, and their allies hold off 300,000 Persians and the shock troops known as the Immortals, led by the (hilarious) king Xerxes...who has a tragically hilarious encounter with the waters of the Hellespont. With the Persian Wars behind them, Athens and Sparta will engage in a fierce rivalry for control of the Aegean and the Mediterranean. Their rivalry will lead to the downfall of Greece and the birth of western civilization as we know it.

To all of our friends of the Jewish faith, American Civics and the Empire of Dreams wishes you a blessed Yom Kippur!

Friday, October 11, 2024 - "The Last Stand of the 300, Part I": Follow Leonidas, the 300 Spartans, Mr. Staten, and the scholars of the History Channel on the epic path to glory at the historic Battle of Thermopylae. Learn about the tactics, weapons, and strategies of the Spartan phalanx, and survive the brutal Spartan education system called the Agoge, as we give our enemies nothing, but take from them everything in part one of the epic documentary The Last Stand of the 300!

American Civics stands with the good people of Florida during this trying time. We’re all thinking of you today.

Hurricane Milton makes landfall near Siesta Key, Florida as a Category 3 storm with powerful winds and dangerous surge.

: http://www.wbaltv.com/article/tracking-milton-october-9/62552048

Thursday, October 10, 2024 - "Clash of the Titans": It is the epic clash of civilizations that will shape the course of western civilization. Greece and Persia will face off in an epic confrontation at Marathon, Thermopylae, Artemisium, Salamis, and Plataea. The battle lines are set. The armies are ready. The pieces are moving. Game on!

If you are in South Florida, and can leave, please evacuate while there’s still time.

US Meteorologist becomes emotional giving Hurricane Milton update

Tuesday, October 8, 2024 - "This...Is...SPARTA!!!": The rivalry between Athens and Sparta takes center stage today. Learn if you have what it takes to survive the Spartan education system, live in the Spartan military, and be a virtuous man or woman of Sparta...or perhaps you should pack your things and move to Athens because YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!! Give honor to your Spartan heritage! You will grow strong or you will die!