Class Struggle from Roman Times to Today
A constant throughout history from Ancient Rome to today is the rich and powerful seek ever more wealth and control. If a popular leader innovates reforms that help the poor they come under sustained attack or worse they are killed. Go back to Caesar in Rome. The standard view is he was a power-hungry tyrant who was slain by the “noble” Brutus and his cohorts to save the Roman Republic. These were some of the measures Caesar implemented which so infuriated his enemies. He distributed land to thousands of veterans and poor Roman families. He began a program of public works. He pushed through rent reductions, reduced debt burdens, and granted Jews the right to practice their religion. These reforms, Michael Parenti says, were unacceptable to the ruling class. Thus, Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March 44 B.C.
Speaker
Michael Parenti
Michael Parenti was a leading independent political analyst, scholar, and author. Cornel West called him “a towering prophetic voice.” He taught at major colleges and universities in the U.S. and abroad. He is the author of numerous books, including Democracy for the Few, Power and the Powerless, and Against Empire. He passed away on January 24, 2026, at the age of 92.
Questioning the Unquestionable
“It is not demanded of readers that they embrace my views, but that they reflect upon their own. How seldom we bother to explore in some critical fashion the fundamental preconceptions that shape our understanding of social and political life. How frequently, as if by reflex rather than reflection, we respond to certain cues and incantations, resisting any incongruous notion. Our opinions shelter and support us; it is an excruciating effort to submit them to reappraisal. Yet if we are to maintain some pretense at being rational creatures, we must risk the discomfiture that comes with questioning the unquestionable, and try to transcend our tendencies toward mental confinement.” – Michael Parenti
From a listener in the Roaring Fork Valley, Colorado –
I have been a big fan of Alt Radio for decades. My Sunday afternoon always includes the AR program at 5. Michael Parenti was great yesterday. A brilliant historian with a sense of humor.
Tracy Frisch –
This is a classic — one of the best Alternative Radio programs ever. Thanks for playing it.
Listener in northern NM. –
Parenti rocks!!
Douglas Williams –
Exquisite corrective to Shakespeare’s and standard history of Julius Caesar. We are ruled by the same kind of ruthless monsters. Thanks for making Parenti available.
Ed –
I found this broadcast to be quite enlightening and had to look it up to share it!
Thank you.
Listener near Camarillo, CA –
Thank you so much for bringing back the voice of Michael Parenti to me. It has been a long time since I have heard him speak. There is no one that I can think of to compare him with today in the way that he educates people by awakening the past and how it still affects our lives today. Parenti’s scholarship and clear regard for the history that lies beneath history are always impressive, and with his understated humor, he makes us so much wiser about today’s unfortunate political follies. These morning hours are good for more people to hear him. This program shows that he is a Master historian and a great commentator.