
Originally Posted by
Philipvs Vallindervs Calicvla
"The Romans had a distinct talent for devising bizarre methods of punishment"
Or for a more modern example
"The Germans have a distinct talent for managing and organising large construction projects"
Another -
"Anywhere in the world where there are people trying to dig things out of the ground you will find a Cornishman with a pasty"
The last from a Cornish miner.
Face it - torture is an art form, and the Iranians have been known for millennia as refined practitioners - remember how the Parthians killed Crassus by pouring liquid gold down his throat? They did that to be ironic.
You only think it's racist because you perceive torture as a negative thing - again - this is a cultural norm, it's far from universally accepted.
I don't agree with everything in that review by a long stretch but I agree with the core point - we were wrong to assume that Western democracy was a natural state that all peoples would "progress" towards.
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