The Will of the Senate - Senate Deliberations III

[Mount Suribachi]

I am concerned over the losses we have suffered in the recent events with Thrace and I feel that all able commanders within the region should be carefully re-deployed until we can secure a strong frontier along the Danube. Perhaps spending some time to construct defensive fortifications at all river crossings directly bordering Thrace would be highly beneficial. While temporarily staffing these forts with our legions seems necessary, in the near future it may be wise to establish some small frontier garrisons that would act as the first line of defence against not only our Thracian neighbors, but all our hostile neighbors.

A wise strategy Senator, and one that I began whilst I had control, unfortunately for a couple of reasons it was something that I barely began. Firstly for time reasons, I only had supreme command for a couple of seasons, but secondly because we quite simply do not have the troop numbers in that area to implement a system where all the crossings are defended by a fort. I agree that a small force holding the fort, with full strength legions in reserve, able to rush to whichever fort is under siege would be an ideal strategy, but it requires time, organisation and resources.

[TinCow]

It seems Numerius Aereolus wishes to violate Senate law yet again. I shall refrain from the usual verbal attacks for it should be clear what my opinion of this man is by now. I will simply remind you all that Motion 10.1 indicates that Debeltos should be given away to a neutral nation, not kept as part of our territory. Investing any money in its safety at all is beyond foolish.

[Dutch_guy]

Motion 10.1 indicates that Debeltos should be given away to a neutral nation, not kept as part of our territory. Investing any money in its safety at all is beyond foolish.

Well, depending on where our current consul's Alliegence lies he may ,at his own risk, decide not to follow motion 10.1.

Now, It wouldn't be wise considering how much influence you have, Verginius, as our current consul(s) (backed by Numerius) have more influence than you do at the moment. So, they could very well get away with it...

They wouldn't even need to spend that much on getting the majority of influence behind them, you know

[econ21]

[NUMERIUS AUREOLUS]: Senator Verginius, I care not for what we do with Debeltos. It is a minor settlement, certainly no Byzantion. Yet, I believe that sooner or later - and probably sooner - we will be at war with Egypt. In such an event, I assume that we will wish to relieve her of her two settlements in Europe. This would leave Debeltos surrounded by our territory and hence surely a target for annexation. To have let it rebel will likely mean Legio V has to return there within a year and pay for its capture in blood again. Senator, I care not for Debeltos. But I do care for the welfare of my men and do not wish to see their lives pointlessly squandered on account of posturing in the Senate.

As to the issue of the legality of continuing to occupy Debeltos, let us recall the wording of motion 10.1:

Motion 10.1: This house authorizes the First Consul to sell or give away Debeltos upon its capture to any neutral nation.

The Senator is surely aware that motion 10.1 merely authorises us to sell or give away Debeltos - it does not instruct or mandate us to do so. It is merely giving the Consuls the power to dispose of it in that way. Such authorisation is required, following the controversy during the Senators own period of office when he gifted some Gaulish settlements to the Germans. Had motion 10.1 instructed or mandated us to do sell or gift Debeltos, I would not have seconded the motion. I cannot believe Senator Verginius, a respected lawyer, is unaware of this legal distinction. Indeed, the Senate record shows him highlighting it in an earlier controversy:

Fortunately, many in this Senate are also fools and do not know how to create effective legislation. I note with pleasure that Motion 6.13 merely authorises me to complete a Consular sized fleet. Why, thank you for the authorization. I assure you I shall not feel the need to exercise the power.

So it can be seen, the Senator is well aware of the distinction between authorisation and instruction. The Consuls are empowered to gift or sell Debeltos, but need not feel the need to exercise the power.

Anyway, this discussion is moot. The Consuls have tried to sell or gift away Debeltos and not yet succeeded. They may continue to try, I do not object. However, until they are actually able to do so, I believe nothing in Motion 10.1 precludes us holding on to the settlement - even if it mandated a gift or sale, rather than authorised one. Indeed, if we are to give away or sell Debeltos we should certainly not abandon it to fall into rebel hands. For were we to lose it to a rebellion, we can scarcely gift or sell something that we no longer possess.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Conscript fathers, I believe the elder Senator Vatinius once told Aureolus that he had a little of the late Quintus in him. I believe he wants to take this one step further and emulate Quintus' achievements at Appolonia.

Himself and all of Legio V are sitting in a virtual hornets' nest; the only thing that have yet to arrive are the hornets! Senator Aureolus, if you truly care for the welfare of your men then you will get out of there before Ptolemy decides that he wants it!

May I remind you, Senators, that we originally took Debeltos for honor purposes - finishing off Macedon and the last killer of Amulius Coruncanius. Those have both been met. I no longer see any purpose in holding Debeltos aside from the fact that it's more land.

Senators, in the last interim session I proposed a motion that Debeltos was to be raided - sacked and then abandoned. Sadly it did not get the required amount of seconders, but look where we are now with it! It's time to think clearly and get out of that place, I don't care who rules it after us!

[Mount Suribachi]

Marcellus, I must apologise for not backing your proposal. I was so focussed on avoiding having to go to Debeltos full stop that I missed your proposal which would have served as an adequate backup - although there is still the problem that if Ptolomy were to occupy the abandoned city, we would be at war with them.

Conscript fathers, I believe the elder Senator Vatinius once told Aureolus that he had a little of the late Quintus in him. I believe he wants to take this one step further and emulate Quintus' achievements at Appolonia

He wishes! The difference between Quintus and Numerius is that one was a noble Roman who did everything according to the mos maorium and achieved his greatest glory in his mature years. The other regards himself as a Roman Alexander and wishes to acrue as much glory to himself as early as possible. I doubt he will wait till he is 42 before attempting again to run for Consul...

*looks hard at Numerius*

Be careful, little Icarus, that you do not fly too close to the Sun.

[Dooz]

{Cornelius Saturninus}

Consul, I was not aware that you had razed Debeltos to the ground... in that case, and in considering Motion 10.1 which had also slipped my mind, there seems to be no other choice than to leave the city and let the people do with themselves as they will, or offer it to another nation to prevent an attack while it is still ours and defenseless. The money will be more wisely spent on our own legions and Republic.

On the matter of forts on our river borders, I support the idea but warn not to build them around any border other than the Thracian ones, as a weakly defended fort can be an easy target for a powerful nation like Egypt. They might not be able to resist attacking, then we would find ourselves in an unecessary war.

[Dutch_guy]

Senators, there's absolutely no merit in continuing to slander Numerius' good name any longer.

The General made a decision in occupying Debeltos, and razing it to the ground. It was a judgement call, whether it was a good one or a bad one only you decide.

Now I appreciate the delicacy of the current situation and would no more than any other man benefit from yet another war, but we cannot alter what has already happened, as that is the case we now need to decide upon what to do with the settlement. To give an overview of the mentioned options.

We could :

I ) continue the occupation.

II ) move out our forces, raise the taxes and let it rebel.

III ) move out our forces and gift it to another faction (tried this, apparently, without success.)

or

IV ) grant the settlement to Ptolemy, as a token of good-will. And relocate out forces stationed in Debeltos.

If I missed anything please say so.

Now I'm not of the opinion that Numerius has broken any law the senate has given him to obey, so I don't deem a trial or something of the like the just thing to do.

I deem we should hear Numerius out, and for the moment, give the General the benefit of the doubt...

[econ21]

[NUMERIUS AUREOLUS]: The destruction of the buildings in Debeltos was conducted by agents of the First Consul, not by me. The Co-Consul instructed me to leave the buildings in tact upon occupation, to make the settlement more attractive to potential buyers. I happily complied with this instruction, seeing no virtue in wanton vandalism of a property we are likely to inherit.

Senators, I submit that from Flavius Pacuvius's list, only options I and II are currently possible. We occupy Debeltos or we abandon it. If we can sell or gift it, all well and good, but both Consuls efforts in this respect have failed so we cannot assume it is possible.

As I have said before, I can see no merit in abandoning it - this is no Apollonia situation. Legio V and the Co-Consul's army between them can take down the two Egyptian settlements in Europe if it comes to war.

The cost of abandoning it is that inevitably, we will have to re-occupy it. Unless the Senate is happy to nurse a piratical sea-port within the bossom of its lands.

We have debated this too long. I am sure the First Consul has already made his decision. The only thing I hope is that he leaves Legio V free to move in the event of war with Ptolemy. This will require, if we do hold on to Debeltos, that we recruit a mercenary garrison and start to build shrines to pacify a people angered by our demolition of their holy places.

[Lucjan]

This debate over the fate of Debeltos is becoming an ever increasing burden on the operations of this senate. I would propose, seeing as that the original intention of this senate was to give the settlement away, that we abandon the city if we cannot now just give it away, wait outside the walls for its citizens to rebel, then remove our legion from the surrounding lands by ship.

If Debeltos is ever to become a Roman settlement in anything more than name, it must first be a profitable settlement connected to Rome. Right now it's a black eye surrounded by angry fists. It is not worth the effort.

[GeneralHankerchief]

My nephew speaks the truth. The only reason Ptolemy will go to war with us is because of Debeltos. If we abandon it, the chances of war with Ptolemy decrease significantly.

[TinCow]

I know exactly what the Motion says and what is technically required by it. I do not fear that an improper decision would be made, as we have a great Consul in Lucius Aemilis. Regardless, we all know the intentions behind Motion 10.1 and we know what the debate was regarding its capture. Numerius Aureolus seems to have a habit of bending Senatorial procedure to his will. I urge all here to be wary of him in the years ahead.

As for Flavius Pacuvius I do not understand how you think I am at odds with the Consul. Luciues Aemilius has always had my full support and I trust him to serve the best interests of the Republic at all times. Indeed, the Aemilii family as a whole stands as a beacon of proper Roman virtues. The Republic could not be in better hands. I believe you have been duped by Numerius Aureolus if you believe he is a supporter of the Consuls, for he has specifically disobeyed Consular orders and openly lied to them. No, that man is no friend to anyone but himself.

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

Letter to the senate, spring 256 BC

Senators,

Much has come to pass.

The Thracians had launched a massive offensive and in a desperate battle south of Oduba we managed to come of victorious, but at a great cost in lives. Still, the Thracian offensive is halted for now and we are redeploying our troops.

In even more terrible news, the brave Gaius Rutilius has perished (sorry about that, Swordsmaster). He fought desperately on the beaches of Melite to stop the Carthagian invasion to no avail. He managed to defeat the first invasion, but then the Carthagians sent a massive army that outnumbered him three to one. Just before Servius Aemilius could arrive to aid him, Gaius Rutilius and his soldiers bravely died on the beaches of Melite. Sensing defeat was imminent, he ordered the citizens to torch the town and leave nothing of value to the Phoenicians.


Servius Aemilius has landed in Sicily to defend the island.

Our navy has regrouped and is closing in on the Carthagian fleet once more, with our best admiral in command.

Considering the recent legal debate about motions I have come to the conclusion that I will have to attack Byzantium whether I approve of it or not, as Motion 10.2 preceeds Motion 10.6. I have ordered Debeltos abandoned and Numerius Aureolus is about to storm the walls of Byzantium.

News came just now that the Ptolemaic empire have declared war on us, without citing a reason. Accordingly, I have ordered Tiberius Coruncanius and Publius Pansa to attack their towns in Asia. They will fight these battles after Byzantium is captured. Hopefully, we will be able to recapture Debeltos before it rebels.

We are training a Consular Army to be used as the senate wishes by the next consul(s), but we strongly recommend it is used to invade Carthage itself, as we are unlikely to prevail at sea, especially as the Ptolemaic empire is terrorizing our seas as well now.

We have managed to form an alliance with the Germans, and they have even promised support against the Thracians. We are still on friendly terms with the Iberians. Gaul has been destroyed.

In spite of hot words exchanged on the senate floor, I hope you will offer prayers for all our commanders, for their succes in the battles ahead.

Praetor Lucius Aemilius

[Dooz]

{Cornelius Saturninus}

Oh my... Consul Aemilius, firstly my congradulations to you for the hard earned victory over the Thracians, and my condolences for all the lives lost at the battle. Also, my sympathies go out to the Rutilius family for the loss of their son at Melite. It seems I must for the time being, put aside all my previous notions about Iberia as much more pressing matters present themselves. However, now I would like to suggest an alliance with the Iberians as a necessary means of protecting our western front. I urge the Consul to immediately pursue this action. I can only hope I will be deployed into military action soon Consul, as I am getting restless and my time and skills are being wasted here.

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

Cornelius Saturninus,

I have tried to come to an agreement with the Iberians several times and they are still on friendly terms with us, but have refused an alliance. At the moment we have a financial agreement, whereby they lended us 500+ dinarii in exchange for 4 tributes of 100 dinarii. Clearly, a nice gesture to our profit, with the added benefit that an attack on us would see the loss of their tributes.
You and Quintus Libo are almost at Oduba, where you will relieve me of defense of the Danube. You are posed to attack a Thracian army next turn (which will be monday probably).
As the region lacks roads, your progress has been slow. Unfortunately, there is only one legion left for you both untill reinforcements arrive (which will take quite some time). I will give you command of this legion and I will send Quintus Libo to take over command of the legion at Luvavum, where another Thracian army is wandering about. I myself will return to Rome if possible and gather another legion as Oduba really needs two legions to be defended well.
Flavius Pacuvius is on his way to Cispine Gaul to take command there.

[Mount Suribachi]

Well, in some ways, it comes as a relief to me that we are now at war with Ptolomy - the kind of relief one has after eating too much rich food and wine at a feast. One knows they need to be sick, but several hours may be spent groaning with the stomach pains, knowing what is needed, waiting for ones body (an agent we have little control over) to get round to doing it. When one finally spews it all up, the relief is blessed.

At the very least it allows us to have defendable borders, though I worry about the 2 narrow points at either end of the Sea of Marmara - easy crossing points that will need to be vigourously defended. And it ends the argument over Debeltos and Byzantion. Both are now within the Roman sphere and need to be defended.

As for Thrace, I had not realised what ferocious warriors this particular brand of Barbarians are. I am coming to the conclusion that trying to hold the Danube against them is maybe not the wisest strategy long-term. For when will they ever stop sending their fearsome hordes against us? Will they ever accept peace? I doubt it. I believe occupation and enslavement are the only way to secure our lands from their threat.

Finally, I must give my warmest congratulations to the First Consul for concluding an alliance with the Germans. What are the state of their diplomatic affairs? Are they still at war with Iberia?

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

As for Thrace, I had not realised what ferocious warriors this particular brand of Barbarians are. I am coming to the conclusion that trying to hold the Danube against them is maybe not the wisest strategy long-term. For when will they ever stop sending their fearsome hordes against us? Will they ever accept peace? I doubt it. I believe occupation and enslavement are the only way to secure our lands from their threat.

Finally, I must give my warmest congratulations to the First Consul for concluding an alliance with the Germans. What are the state of their diplomatic affairs? Are they still at war with Iberia?

The Germans remain at war with Iberia, and are allies with the kingdom of Armenia. I intend to have Quintus Libo capture the Thracian settlement north of Luvavum (if you agree, of course) and give it to the Germans. The Thracians can be ferocious opponents, but I would advise against expanding our border beyond the Danube. Our supply situation will become even more ghastly than it already is, and we will lack a natural border. Anyhow, The Thracians have been severely chastised by now, and I hope to leave them with just three cities at the end of our consulship. That should make them less of a threat to us. Perhaps in the distant future the conquest of Dacia north of the river Danube would be wise, but I really feel we need to do much more work in our development before we should mount such an expedition.
Unfortunately, the Sarmatians are allies of the kingdom of Thrace, but not at war with us. I intend to buy their friendship next season if it is not too expensive (or rather, I was hoping you would).

OCC: Sarmatians : Declare war on our enemies Thrace and offer, say, 2000 gold. Worth a try.

[TinCow]

They have been destroyed! GAUL IS NO MORE! Despite the news from Ptolemy and Cartage, this is a day for celebration! I hearby proclaim a public feast in the forum and five days of games in the arena, entirely funded from my own estate. Let the city rejoice in the destruction of our oldest and most vile enemy! This is a historic day!

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

It is indeed a holy day when the only nation ever to sack Roma vanishes from the face of the earth. I will make the appropriate sacrifices to Romulus, Jupiter and Mars. Our vengeance was long in coming, but it tastes all the sweeter for that.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Well, normally I don't drink... but one occasion won't hurt. Anything to take my mind off where I'm at right now.

[Dutch_guy]

Well, an event of this magnitude certainly calls for a celebration !

On a more serious note, I shall offer one tenth of my fortune to Hercules Invictus to thank the god of Victory for this total victory against the Gauls.

[TinCow]

I would like to present to the Senate a work commissioned by my grandfather, who himself lived through the sack of Rome. This piece shows the re-founding of our great city in the aftermath of the Gallic defeat and expulsion from our lands. Let us remember that, though we may often feel that our actions are but a game, our ancestors lived through this terrible time. The fallen shall be forever remembered by the ever increasing glory of the Republic.



(OOC: "The Second Founding of Rome, after the Defeat of the Gauls," painting by G. Sciuti)

[Dooz]

{Cornelius Saturninus}

Senators, let us not lose focus at a time like this. The Gallic tribes may all be under another nation's rule, but they are not destroyed as a people. Many hundreds of them serve in our legions, many thousands more in rival armies. A keen eye must be kept on them. We mustn't lose sight of the fact that the Thracians are breathing down our necks, they are the new Gauls. Do not lose yourselves in celebration and drinking, as you may soon find yourselves too tired to fight off the Thracian hordes.

As I write this from the fort I am stationed at along the Danube, a Thracian contingent makes it's way towards the river crossing. I will attack it in the morning before it crosses our borders. There are reports of many more Thracian forces moving in from the east, reinforcements will be of the essence in the coming years. Young Galerius Vatinius has been assigned as my Tribune... quite the loudmouth, unagreeable, angry fellow. Not much of a military man either, let's hope he doesn't get himself or my men killed out there. Let us hope my next letter will be to report the succesful repulsion of the Thracians at the Danube. Ave Senators.

[econ21]

[NUMERIUS AUREOLUS]: I cannot celebrate the destruction of Gaul at a time when our armies have been anhilated at Melite, our fleet defeated and my brother-in-law, Gaius Rutilus, slain by Carthaginians. Cornelius Saturninus is right, there is a loss of focus. I would go further and say there is a complacency here. Romans, where is your sense of honour and pride? We stand hear like cold old men, ignoring the shameful loss of our lands and instead celebrating an Iberian victory. This is absurd.

Senators - I believe that the Consuls have another year in office. I would like to know what plans they have for confronting Carthage. Do they plan to evict the Carthaginians from Melite? Are the garrisons of Aleria and Caralis to be reinforced with a Praetorian army led by a Lower House General?

I have requested a transfer to the Carthaginian front, but it has been denied. Fine. But I insist that we need at least three Lower House generals in the area even if we are just to defend ourselves: one to garrison Aleria and Caralis; one to garrison Sicily and one to reclaim Melite. At present, there is only Servius Aemilius present, a young man of 19 and only a student. We have no shortage of Lower House generals. At least two more should be sent to join Servius on our southern front.

By my rough count, we lost over 1250 men on the battles for Melite. This was more than were lost under the entire first term of Consul Aemilius (given that chirurgeons probably saved many who our battle reports record as casualties). Never again should we rely on Upper House generals to lead our armies in such crucial battles as that at Melite.

Gauls be damned, it is Carthage that is our main enemy now and it on her that all our attention should be focussed!

[Lucjan]

I wish Senator Saturninus the best of augers in his coming days. War against the Thracian barbarians has proven increasingly difficult, our losses unexpected, the number of men in their hordes greater than I had assumed. May Mars fight alongside you in your struggles to come, and may Jupiter make that fool Vatinius sleep his days away, so that his angry ramblings and poor judgement does not cost men their lives on the field.

On another note, I feel that senator Aureolus's request for three legions in the Carthaginian theatre are at present unnecessary. I do not believe Carthage would be so brash as to assault Aleria or Caralis before at least making a foothold on Sicily, and that is an act I will not let happen. If I were to make a suggestion on the situation, I would request a second legion be sent to the fort in central Sicily, that I may have a defensible, unexhausted position to fall back on should the worst of fates befall us. But I have confidence in my abilities, Carthage will be held back from Sicily, and as soon as one of our fleets can dock in Syracuse, I will charge myself with the task of retaking Melite.

[econ21]

[NUMERIUS AUREOLUS]: Senator Servius Aemilius, forgive me, but it seems I am not making myself clear. It is not the three legions that are urgently required in your theatre - it is the three Lower House generals. We seem to have plenty of men - we have just thrown away 1250 of them for nothing in Melite. But generals for some reason are hard to find - you are the only one in place.

Servius, I salute your willingness to put on your manly gown early and go into the field to face Carthage. It is a brave act and one that is fitting for a true Roman. But you cannot be in three places at the same time. You cannot take Melite and at the same time guard Sicily and the Sardinia-Corsica region.

Carthage has proven herself unpredictable, I submit that we should not rely on our best guess as to her intentions but should prepare for several contingencies. But if we do want to play a guessing game, my hunch is that when she has secured Melite, she will find Sardinia-Corsica a more inviting target than a heavily defended Sicily.

[Dooz]

{Cornelius Saturninus}

Thank you for the well wishes senators. I would just like to chime in here to remind the senators that before Gaius Rutilius was killed, he burned Melite to the ground. It may not be a crucial island for us to retake, in terms of any economic benefit to us. In fact, it may drain our economy more than it will help if we have to build it back up, garrisson it, spend resources on it. On the other hand, if Carthage holds on to it, they may be a bit too close to Sicily for comfort. Just things to keep in mind.

[econ21]

[NUMERIUS AUREOLUS]: Oh, Senator Saturninus, I had hoped to enlist you as my ally in this debate! Are there no real fighters left in the Senate! I say this not to besmirch the honour of the men I address. I know First Consul Aemilius is a brave general of supreme ability. Likewise my father-in-law Senator Verginius. And indeed, the augurs suggest great things of Senator Saturninus. But abandon Melite to the Carthaginians! What is this?

We construct a great Republic, stretching from Gaul to Byzantion. We bring the benefits of Roman law, order, roads, economic development and sanitation to thousands of Italians, Gauls, Greeks, Carthaginians, Macedonians and Thracians. These people become our responsibility. Not yet full Roman citizens, but our charges - men, women and children we have sworn to protect.

Then, when a real fight starts, when we lose 1250 men in ignominious defeat, what do we do to the people we have sworn to defend? Do we say to them: sorry, you are a burden on our treasury, you must fend for yourselves. Do we say to their conquerors: fair enough, you fought well, you keep them, they are not worth our while.

I say: No! We do not surrender an inch of our ground to the enemy. More particularly, we do not abandon any of our people to the will of aggressors or the depravations of rebel bandits. If our enemies take a province from us, we come right back for it. If they knock us down, we stand up and pummel them. If they humiliate us, we anhilate them.

Senators, I debated a similar issue over Debeltos. The majority of voices in the Senate argued that we should abandon it, perchance because they considered it not cost effective to hold. At that time, I dismissed our disagreements then as a minor matter. But I see now that I was right to argue the case for not abandoning Debeltos, because it raises a broader issue of principle.

And the issue is: what is the Republic at heart? A crude economic arrangement, managed by dessicated calculating machines, interested only in the cost and benefit? Or a body of people, bound together by common culture, ruled by men of blood and honour?

Senators, I know which vision of Rome I prefer, although I am starting to doubt which better describes the present reality.

[Death the destroyer of worlds]

Numerius Aureolus,

I apologize that you are aggrieved by my refusal, but I would be hardpressed to keep my credibility if I gave in to your requests. Nevertheless, command will soon transfer to my co-consul, and he may see things in a different light. I compliment you on the small number of losses in the taking of Byzantium, we are hardpressed to resupply our legion so far to the east.
I must say I wonder that first you say you grieve for Gaius Rutilus' death, and next you clamour about the 'throwing away' of the men I sent to save him.
The matter of Carthage is now in the hands of Neptune, Mars and the courage of our sailors. Soon our fleets will clash once again. If we are triumphant, we can probably save the other islands. Otherwise, we will not be able to safeguard them.
However the battle resolves, it is my opion that Carthage must be destroyed as we cannot win the war at sea in the long term.
As soon as I and my co-consul have decided on a suitable general, the Consular Army will march to Sicily. It is my hope that in the coming senate session, a year from now, the senate will decide to destroy the Republic of Carthage and we will send all our forces in Sicily on a campaign of conquest in Africa to end this threat forever.

[TinCow]

Consul Lucius Aemilius speaks wisely. Carthage has certainly become an incredible danger and an expedition to deal with them in their homelands must be undertaken at once. If we do not, we shall find our cities besieged and our ports blockaded.

It is a great shame that Numerius Aureolus and his supporters had to provoke our current war with Ptolemy at a time when we could have used a peaceful eastern front and access to their markets. Perhaps this will teach others not to go looking for wars. They will find us soon enough.