[Quintus Curtius]

(08-25-2013 11:39 PM)Samseau Wrote:  

(08-25-2013 11:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

That's cool to discover things about your heritage, man. Congrats. I've known a couple Armenian guys over the years and both of them could speak both Turkish and Armenian. I guess they have to know both languages.
Turkey really is an ethnically diverse place. I've read somewhere that a big percentage of the population in Anatolia is actually Kurdish. And in the days of the Ottoman Empire before the end of World War I, there was a very big population of Armenian Christians, and even Greeks, believe it or not. A lot of ethnic cleansing and terrible stuff happened as the Ottomans collapsed. A huge volume of Armenians and Arabs emigrated to North and South America in the 1920s and 1930s.
And the hilarious thing is that when these immigrants came to South America, everyone called them "Turcos" even if they were Arabs or Armenians....

Present day Turkey has one of the most violent histories on the planet. Before it was the Ottoman Empire it was the Byzantine Empire, which started off as the remains of the Roman Empire but slowly was dominated by the Greeks who took over the Empire and made Greek the official language.

The Byzantine Empire had an incredibly violent existence; plagued by wars from aggressive neighbors as well as civil wars from the constant assassinations of its Emporers due to the heavy infighting between its major political factions, the Reds and Blues. Google the Nika Riots for a hell of a story.

Reading about the history of Constantinople (present day Istanbul) is gruesome as it is fascinating, from it's start as Greek city that morphed into the seat of a great Christian Empire that was slowly destroyed and turned into a Islamic one, which eventually died and gave way to the present day atheist reforms of Ataturk.

Turkey is also notable for being home to a once 90%+ white Empire that was invaded by Arabs, multiple times, who slaughtered the men and raped the women, which is why Turkish citizens are extremely ethnically diverse and range from snow white to dark brown, with most being in-between.

Sam:

That Nika Riots story with Belasaurius has always been one of my favorites. A textbook example of how iron-fisted ruthlessness is necessary when your throne is threatened. Justinian hesitated, but Theodora (an ex-courtesan, no less!) was tough as hell and made him stand his ground. Her quote: "This purple is best fit as a burial shroud".
Fast forward to today: If Bashar Asad had learned this lesson, he would not be dealing with a civil war now. If he had acted ruthlessly when the rebellion started, instead of hesitating, he would have had a better chance of keeping his throne.

[Samseau]

(08-26-2013 01:25 AM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

(08-25-2013 11:39 PM)Samseau Wrote:  

(08-25-2013 11:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

That's cool to discover things about your heritage, man. Congrats. I've known a couple Armenian guys over the years and both of them could speak both Turkish and Armenian. I guess they have to know both languages.
Turkey really is an ethnically diverse place. I've read somewhere that a big percentage of the population in Anatolia is actually Kurdish. And in the days of the Ottoman Empire before the end of World War I, there was a very big population of Armenian Christians, and even Greeks, believe it or not. A lot of ethnic cleansing and terrible stuff happened as the Ottomans collapsed. A huge volume of Armenians and Arabs emigrated to North and South America in the 1920s and 1930s.
And the hilarious thing is that when these immigrants came to South America, everyone called them "Turcos" even if they were Arabs or Armenians....

Present day Turkey has one of the most violent histories on the planet. Before it was the Ottoman Empire it was the Byzantine Empire, which started off as the remains of the Roman Empire but slowly was dominated by the Greeks who took over the Empire and made Greek the official language.

The Byzantine Empire had an incredibly violent existence; plagued by wars from aggressive neighbors as well as civil wars from the constant assassinations of its Emporers due to the heavy infighting between its major political factions, the Reds and Blues. Google the Nika Riots for a hell of a story.

Reading about the history of Constantinople (present day Istanbul) is gruesome as it is fascinating, from it's start as Greek city that morphed into the seat of a great Christian Empire that was slowly destroyed and turned into a Islamic one, which eventually died and gave way to the present day atheist reforms of Ataturk.

Turkey is also notable for being home to a once 90%+ white Empire that was invaded by Arabs, multiple times, who slaughtered the men and raped the women, which is why Turkish citizens are extremely ethnically diverse and range from snow white to dark brown, with most being in-between.

Sam:

That Nika Riots story with Belasaurius has always been one of my favorites. A textbook example of how iron-fisted ruthlessness is necessary when your throne is threatened. Justinian hesitated, but Theodora (an ex-courtesan, no less!) was tough as hell and made him stand his ground. Her quote: "This purple is best fit as a burial shroud".
Fast forward to today: If Bashar Asad had learned this lesson, he would not be dealing with a civil war now. If he had acted ruthlessly when the rebellion started, instead of hesitating, he would have had a better chance of keeping his throne.

I plan on doing some articles about Justinian the Great and Theodora on RoK, but I'm not sure on what direction I want to take it just yet.

Justinian the Great was perhaps one of the most evil men of history, you can read the Secret History over at no ma'am:

http://no-maam.blogspot.com/2003/01/secr...sarea.html

There is a reason he chose a whore for his Queen.

[Sonsowey]

Seriously though 23andMe would be interesting, and the disease probabilities are not destiny or anything. They list hundreds of diseases and conditions, just because it says you may have an "elevated risk" for a disease doesn't mean anything about you actually getting it. And you can also get a disease it says you have a "decreased risk" for.

It's like knowing that Jews are more likely to have Tay-Sachs or blacks are more likely to have Diabetes. Doesn't mean you're def gonna get it

[aphelion]

DUDE SERIOUSLY WHAT A MINTER MOVE

[aphelion]

jk, cheers yo

[Roosh]

(08-25-2013 11:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

Did you hear Turkish growing up, and do you know a bit of it?

Yes a lot of Turkish. My mom said that when I was young I could actually speak some.

(08-25-2013 11:51 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:  

Roosh,
how's your Farsi? And do you speak Turkish/Armenian?

Currently I speak none of these languages.

[misello]

You should try to visit Armenia once while you're in EE, I went there in 2008. It has one of the most ancient cultures in the world, great food, and a lot more women than men (lots of Armenian men leave for Russia or America for work). Armenians are pretty talented people, lots of scientists, chess players, musicians.

[Enigma]

When can we expect Bang Iran?

[Basil Ransom]

"DUDE SERIOUSLY WHAT A MINTER MOVE"

I ALWAYS KNEW ROOSH WAS A FAKE HALF TURK.

[DVY]

Roosh would murder LA. He got 2 major groups covered- persians and armos.

[The Beast1]

It's alright Roosh, i'm not really french. My last name just kid of looks french

[ColSpanker]

Master Roosh: Did you parents meet in the United States or the old countries?

[el mechanico]

I have some questions..

1. Are you happy about this? If yes why?

2. Does this make you feel different about Turks?

3. When exactly was your mom going to tell you this? You're 34.

4. Does this have any impact on your religious views? Do you feel like you're part of something bigger?

[Que enspastic]

Interesting geneology.

[Tuthmosis]

This is a huge game-changer.

Roosh needs to make a special pilgrimage to Glendale, CA, home of the biggest community of Armenians outside of Armenia.

   

[WanderingSoul]

I just found out last week that my family is actually Catholic and not Christian.

We obviously take this shit very seriously.

[Roosh]

(08-26-2013 11:08 AM)ColSpanker Wrote:  

Master Roosh: Did you parents meet in the United States or the old countries?

They met in Flordia when they were in their early 20s. English was the common language.

(08-26-2013 11:12 AM)el mechanico Wrote:  

I have some questions..

1. Are you happy about this? If yes why?

2. Does this make you feel different about Turks?

3. When exactly was your mom going to tell you this? You're 34.

4. Does this have any impact on your religious views? Do you feel like you're part of something bigger?

1. Not happy or sad. I don't identify with my parents birth countries so it doesn't change anything.
2. Not at the moment.
3. She has been telling me for years, but her wording was confusing, and I was ignorant on what Armenia actually was. For a time period I thought it was a religion.
4. No change.

[Hencredible Casanova]

Roosh's Armenian origins could help explain his geographic mobility. Armenians are a very mobile people. Could be genetic. The country has barely 3 million people but the diaspora is many, many times larger and can be found almost throughout the world.

They have an interesting history. Either Armenia or Ethiopia was the first country to adopt Christianity as a state religion (some time after 300 AD in both places).

Many accomplished people as well. One of the two founders of reddit is Armenian-American. You can easily tell if someone is Armenian by their surname, which always ends in "-ian."

[Quintus Curtius]

(08-26-2013 01:29 AM)Samseau Wrote:  

(08-26-2013 01:25 AM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

(08-25-2013 11:39 PM)Samseau Wrote:  

(08-25-2013 11:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

That's cool to discover things about your heritage, man. Congrats. I've known a couple Armenian guys over the years and both of them could speak both Turkish and Armenian. I guess they have to know both languages.
Turkey really is an ethnically diverse place. I've read somewhere that a big percentage of the population in Anatolia is actually Kurdish. And in the days of the Ottoman Empire before the end of World War I, there was a very big population of Armenian Christians, and even Greeks, believe it or not. A lot of ethnic cleansing and terrible stuff happened as the Ottomans collapsed. A huge volume of Armenians and Arabs emigrated to North and South America in the 1920s and 1930s.
And the hilarious thing is that when these immigrants came to South America, everyone called them "Turcos" even if they were Arabs or Armenians....

Present day Turkey has one of the most violent histories on the planet. Before it was the Ottoman Empire it was the Byzantine Empire, which started off as the remains of the Roman Empire but slowly was dominated by the Greeks who took over the Empire and made Greek the official language.

The Byzantine Empire had an incredibly violent existence; plagued by wars from aggressive neighbors as well as civil wars from the constant assassinations of its Emporers due to the heavy infighting between its major political factions, the Reds and Blues. Google the Nika Riots for a hell of a story.

Reading about the history of Constantinople (present day Istanbul) is gruesome as it is fascinating, from it's start as Greek city that morphed into the seat of a great Christian Empire that was slowly destroyed and turned into a Islamic one, which eventually died and gave way to the present day atheist reforms of Ataturk.

Turkey is also notable for being home to a once 90%+ white Empire that was invaded by Arabs, multiple times, who slaughtered the men and raped the women, which is why Turkish citizens are extremely ethnically diverse and range from snow white to dark brown, with most being in-between.

Sam:

That Nika Riots story with Belasaurius has always been one of my favorites. A textbook example of how iron-fisted ruthlessness is necessary when your throne is threatened. Justinian hesitated, but Theodora (an ex-courtesan, no less!) was tough as hell and made him stand his ground. Her quote: "This purple is best fit as a burial shroud".
Fast forward to today: If Bashar Asad had learned this lesson, he would not be dealing with a civil war now. If he had acted ruthlessly when the rebellion started, instead of hesitating, he would have had a better chance of keeping his throne.

I plan on doing some articles about Justinian the Great and Theodora on RoK, but I'm not sure on what direction I want to take it just yet.

Justinian the Great was perhaps one of the most evil men of history, you can read the Secret History over at no ma'am:

http://no-maam.blogspot.com/2003/01/secr...sarea.html

There is a reason he chose a whore for his Queen.

___________

One possible suggestion on how to turn the Nika Revolt incident into a post: use it as a case study on the concept that "ruthlessness is sometimes necessary". Maybe you could use it to make the point that sometimes we have to pull out the sword and start swinging if we want to survive. Theodora and Justinian put down the revolt in a blood-drenched massacre, but it was arguably necessary to keep the throne. He then went on to accomplish much as emperor. Any leader knows that at times the fist needs to come out, and I think this incident is a good way to make the point. When you are faced with insurrection, subversion, or revolt, the most drastic action is required. History is filled with similar examples.
As for Procopius's "Secret History", let's just say that it was written by a courtier who had fallen out of favor with the usual palace intrigue. Certainly Theodora was no lady (!!), but we need to take Procopius with a grain of salt.

[luggage]

My cousin is actually married to a Lebanese-Armenian. Now she's hot.


I wonder how Armenian women not living in America are like?

[Sombro]

Geographically, Armenia is very small but historically often extended into what is now Turkey, so cultural overlap is understandable.

A buddy of mine's father is of the Armenian diaspora (born in Tel Aviv I think). Smart guy -- Ivy League and all that.

More on the Armenian Genocide:

http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.html?ti...n_Genocide

Quote:

The remarkable thing about the following events is the virtually complete cooperation of the Armenians. For a number of reasons they did not know what was planned for them and went along with "their" government's plan to "relocate them for their own good." First, the Armenians were asked to turn in hunting weapons for the war effort. Communities were often given quotas and would have to buy additional weapons from Turks to meet their quota. Later, the government would claim these weapons were proof that Armenians were about to rebel. The able bodied men were then "drafted" to help in the wartime effort. These men were either immediately killed or were worked to death. Now the villages and towns, with only women, children, and elderly left were systematically emptied. The remaining residents would be told to gather for a temporary relocation and to only bring what they could carry. The Armenians again obediently followed instructions and were "escorted" by Turkish Gendarmes in death marches.

[Volk]

You are : American. I am : Colombian. My family came from all over the world, yet it doesn't matter. I've always find it interesting how many people from the US call themselves up to the 32th. I swear I met this girl in LA once who told me she's 1/16th Italian and 1/16th Native american or some bs like that.

[Samseau]

(08-26-2013 12:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

As for Procopius's "Secret History", let's just say that it was written by a courtier who had fallen out of favor with the usual palace intrigue. Certainly Theodora was no lady (!!), but we need to take Procopius with a grain of salt.

But in actuality his version of the events match the historical record. Towards the end of Justinian's rule and after he died the Empire went into a decline and was nearly wiped out. Because of Justinian's mismanagement all of the land he captured was lost and the Latin side of Byzantium was phased out. Decades of assassinations of various emperors followed Justinian because he did a poor job with leaving a successor. It was because of Justinian's rule that Greek became the official language.

If anything the Nika riots are a story of how a tyrant kept his power.

[JayJuanGee]

(08-26-2013 02:39 PM)Volk Wrote:  

You are : American. I am : Colombian. My family came from all over the world, yet it doesn't matter. I've always find it interesting how many people from the US call themselves up to the 32th. I swear I met this girl in LA once who told me she's 1/16th Italian and 1/16th Native american or some bs like that.

Volk: You are correct that talking about ancestory is a very common practice for Americans and Americans tend to be very interested in describing their ancestory - even though in the end, it may be difficult to understand the exact meaning or whether there is any value in knowing the minutiae. especially when delving into the 1/16ths and the 1/32nds. It may be an American's way of wanting to appear more worldly?

Like you, some people may find this talk to be meaningless gibberish - like I find with discussions of sports. Usually, I do not really have an interest in engaging in deep conversations about spectator sports; however, frequently, I get caught in situations with people who like to get into great discussions about the details of spectator sports... and sometimes, i just try to go with the flow.. until a convenient time to bail ship or to bounce, as they say.

[Quintus Curtius]

(08-26-2013 03:04 PM)Samseau Wrote:  

(08-26-2013 12:18 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  

As for Procopius's "Secret History", let's just say that it was written by a courtier who had fallen out of favor with the usual palace intrigue. Certainly Theodora was no lady (!!), but we need to take Procopius with a grain of salt.

But in actuality his version of the events match the historical record. Towards the end of Justinian's rule and after he died the Empire went into a decline and was nearly wiped out. Because of Justinian's mismanagement all of the land he captured was lost and the Latin side of Byzantium was phased out. Decades of assassinations of various emperors followed Justinian because he did a poor job with leaving a successor. It was because of Justinian's rule that Greek became the official language.

If anything the Nika riots are a story of how a tyrant kept his power.

Yeah, I agree. He sure kept his power all right. But I think there was some real good that came out of his rule, though. The Code of Justinian (the Digest of Roman Law) was a real achievement in collating, preserving, and transmitting Roman law for the ages. I believe he also was the emperor who commissioned Hagia Sophia, what still is an architectural masterpiece. And I think he should also get some credit for temporarily re-conquering parts of the Western Empire that had been lost to the Vandals and Goths.
His treatment of his general Belisaurius was disgraceful. This guy was loyal to him and did great things, and got nothing but suspicion and abuse.