In the early 4^th century BC, *short pause* the Gauls crossed the Alps and swarmed into Italy. Along the way, they defeated and sacked a small town of doubtable significance to the time. The city leaders, afterward, discussed leaving the town and moving to a nearby one and starting over. They decided to, in the end, stay. A mere 100 years later, Rome, that same town, was the master of Central Italy and would not find a foe it could not beat for centuries to come.

Many historians nowadays believe that the most important inheritance that the Western Civilization, virtual descendants of Roman and Greek civilization, was the culture of the Rome – its ideals and its standards, its morals and beliefs. But some disagree, I amoung them.

One of the most amazing thing about the majority of Western civilization, in this minority opinion, is that countries, or their people, often ignore the odds and strike out for their own well being.

Another, more important in my opinion, is the belief that if you work hard enough, you get what you work for, if its money, fame, or leadership of a country, no matter your origins, that you can be whatever you want to be.

Both, some argue (Myself included), come from Rome. Britain and the French Resistance in World War 2 continued to fight Germany even as the days got darker. Abraham Lincoln, one of the most famed US Presidents, started life in a poor log cabin and was a railroad lawyer before he got elected to the Presidency.

As the Roman Republic – and later, the Roman Empire – grew larger and larger, more and more people wanted to be able to call themselves Roman, to take part in the pride that was the Empire.

By the time of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who himself started as a commoner with a dream to become Emperor, a dream fulfilled, very few of those who called themselves Roman actually were from that city, but all took part in the Roman dream, their culture and heritage.

Rome, as a nation, fell, as all nations do eventually. But Rome, as a culture, lives on today. Today, many people come to a land unknown to the Romans of any age, and wish to, who want to, be able to call themselves American, to take part in the American dream, their culture and heritage. And take part in the dream they do. Andrew Carnige was a poor Scottish immigrant when he came to the United States, to become one of the richest men in the nation with his steel company.