The Fourth of July is as good a time as any to reflect on the meaning of patriotism. For good reason, assassins generally do not get a very good rap in the history books. But Marcus Junius Brutus is perhaps one of the more unjustly maligned figures in history; not because he murdered Caesar, but because he made a last, futile effort to preserve the Roman Republic. I attribute this attitude largely to the eloquence and anti-democratic bias of Mr. William Shakespeare, who gave Antony all the good lines. It is worth remembering from Brutus's story, however, that while very few will have the opportunity and the temptation to establish an empire, anyone can act to preserve the Republic, albeit not always without personal cost.
;)