I know I'm going to regret that, but can someone explain to me the obsession with the Roman Empire? I learned about it in school, see leftovers from it all the time and... ya, it's just another dead empire, one of many; we got plenty of leftovers from other ones as well around here.
Being in the Middle East and not Europe/Americas, I'm probably missing some cultural baggage.
@ombialik For me, it's more of an obsession with history than one with the Roman Empire. I'm currently re-reading O'Donnell's _The Ruin of the Roman Empire_, btw, and it gives a lot more attention to the Eastern empire and its interface with Persia than most such histories, which I like, tho I have to use maps a lot more often. :)
