by Formosus Viriustus on Sat Feb 28, 2009 12:57 am
Salve,
The following appeared on www.truthorfiction.com
Quote from Cicero of Ancient Rome about Balancing the Budget, Reducing Public Debt, and Curtailing Foreign Assistance-Truth! & Fiction!
Summary of the eRumor:
A forwarded email with a quote dating back to 55 B.C. from Cicero of Ancient Rome about balancing the budget, reducing public debt, and curtailing foreign assistance.
The Truth:
This alleged quote from Marcus Tullius Cicero that began circulating on the Internet in October, 2008, is based on a true statement from the great Roman orator, but someone added a lot to it to make it match some of what the United States was facing economically.
The actual quote is: "The arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and assistance to foreign hands (sic) should be curtailed, lest Rome fall."
updated 10/08/08
A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:
“The budget should be balanced, the treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance.” -- Cicero , 55 B.C.
I am pretty sure that that ' h ' must be an ' l ' (lands). But then, I'm not a Cicero-expert. You see how these things start ? Someone mistypes one letter or one decimal point and you're off. You all know the 'iron-in-spinach-story' of cause.
And it's unavoidable : a few days ago, in a piece on the Roman calendar, I wrote about Quintilius and Sextilius. Of cause that should be either Quintilis or Quintilus and either Sextilis or Sextilus. Not what I wrote. And me pretending to know a bit about calendars.
So I have cleaned that bit up. Yes, that's how I am. Wouldn't want it on my conscience that some kid fails his exam because he not only misquotes Cicero, but also got the Roman months wrong due to my carelessness.
The Interweb is merciless. You have to check every word at least three times.
Vale,