The Roman Empire was one of the best things to happen to the world and we would be much better off with it back in force. Teal'c did something like this a while back with the British Empire. Thought I'd do one. Anyway, discuss.
Roman imperialism did have a vast effect on Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Whether that was a good thing, I can't really say. The people seemed, in my opinion, to come to rely so much on the Empire that, when it fell, we endured centuries of dark ages. On the plus side, it united much of the ancient world under one banner. If you lived inside the borders, you were considered a citizen with full rights - one of the first times that has been done in human history. Their military was top of the line, their roads and architecture were revolutionary for the time, and while they had sane emperors, most Romans lived comfortable lives. The real problems happened when the inbreeding, corruption, and nepotism degraded the government. In Roman times, it was not uncommon to marry a close cousin, or sometimes even a sister/brother, to keep the royal blood in the family. This lead to large amounts of inbreeding, sometimes leading to mental defects. Combine that with lead piping under the streets of Rome, and you get generations of insane emperors (like Caligula, Nero, etc). Corruption got so bad that it was almost impossible to do business in a large city without bribing officials, even if you were honest. Nepotism also assured whole armies being commanded by incompetent generals simply because their father was a senator, or some such. Senators also got their positions based on brown-nosing the Emperor and family position, not merit. I personally wouldn't mind seeing a nation of that scope rise again, but only if the problems of leadership and corruption could be solved. A kingship or imperial government could even work, if someone could ensure that only the most qualified would get the position. Unfortunately, human nature being what it is, such a government is unlikely, except on a theoretical scale.
Roman Empire also had a significant amount of impact on the number system which we need in our daily society. If it were back in full force, this would mean that we are subjected to lots more cruelty, and a big hierarchy system. however, everything would be more neatly ordered, so I think that it's better like this, now. Off Topic: Shouldn't this be put in the debate corner?
Teal'c's topic wasn't in Debate, so I figured this one shouldn't be either; it's essentially the same thing. Anyway, I should clarify as to why the Roman Empire should still exist: When the Roman Empire fell, Europe basically collapsed, which brought a whole host of problems: the Dark Ages, the Middle Ages (both of which were rather violent and uncivilized), and it pretty much set society back a good deal. If the empire had never fallen, we would be living in a much different world. And you are assuming that the Empire was cruel, simply because of its autocratic nature. I don't think it was, for the most part; it was probably only as bad as the States are.
It had all the problems we always see, either in reality or fiction, associated with a large power - corruption, bad leadership, stretched military, the works. I think it did well, but it couldn't return as it was, I think. It would need some massive readjustments and rethinkings, especially because of the influence democracy and freedom have had on the world, particularly Europe/America.
The question that best sums up this thread was immortalised in The Life of Brian; "What did the Romans ever do for us?" The brought civilisation to otherwise uncivilised areas. All of the people may not have benefited from this straight away but whenever the Romans left the infrastructure for new civilisations was there. People seem to think that change can only happen without a bit of suffering, but they forget that only in the times of greatest suffering the greatest change is made to happen. The greatest benefit is also obtained by those that live quite a while after the suffering has occurred (the slave trade being a major indicator of this. If it wasn't for the slave trade [although it is impossible to predict what would have happened if the slave trade had never sprung up] then black people would never have gained the place in society that they deserved and may have been left as the "savages" in Africa as they were seen to be).
