@jackwilliambell @FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic I may have to read all of Terry’s books again just to see what I missed.
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@pluralistic @alterelefant The documentary about Bannon was quite jarring. American Dharma. That guy is a nutcase.
@pluralistic They remind me of Roman firefighting companies - plenty of anecdotes about them demanding the property being burned as payment for their services, talk about a "fire sale"!
You are thinking of Crassus. AKA 'the richest man in Rome'.
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Licinius_Crassus
Crassus was a property speculator who also operated a fire brigade. They would assemble at the location of a fire and then let the property burn until the property owner sold the property to Crassus at a bargain price – which got lower every second the fire burned.
@jackwilliambell @csolisr @pluralistic
I remember something similar (but humourously) from Pratchett’s Discworld. Ankh-Morpork has Thieves, Assassins and ‘Seamstresses’ Guilds, but no Firefighting Guild.
Apparently there was one at some point bit they ran an protection racket the Mafia would have been proud of, standing around rich houses loudly proclaiming how flammable it all looked and what a shame it would be if it all went up in flames while not paid up to the guild.
@FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic
Prachett based Ankh-Morpork on 18th century London, but he knew his history. Some aspects of Ankh-Morpork were based on Rome (Republic and Empire) and others based on 16th century Italy. Forex, 'The Patrician' is a clear callback to the Medici and Machiavelli.
@jackwilliambell @FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic I may have to read all of Terry’s books again just to see what I missed.
@BoTally54 @jackwilliambell @FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic
The APF is worth browsing through whenever you take a trip into any of his books.
@jackwilliambell @FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic Well, yes.
Vetinari is a direct pun on Medici. Same job, (usually) different number of legs.
@gmh @jackwilliambell @FluffyBunnikins @csolisr @pluralistic is it like "veterinarian" and "medic"?
Edit: just saw it right there. This makes me a bit afraid of reading Discworld and not getting more than 5% of the references
@pluralistic didn't see the Bannon one - but this one did the rounds regarding Brexit and finding things on way to collapse easier than deals - https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00824843.pdf
@pluralistic
Thiel & Karp too