BC and AD are not PC

[intaglio]

Contrary to popular belief the Roman Empire did survive - it was just called Byzantium. It remained the most powerful state in Europe up to the 12th century and was still immensely important up until the final fall in the 17th. During these 1200 years it showed little interest in what we would term technology with the exception of structures.

 

[Beakmoo]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Druids

A bit of both I guess, but I wonder, if the Roman empire had survived, would the World be more or less barbaric and where would we be technologicaly?

I think Robert Silverberg wrote some stuff about that, or was it Brian Aldiss? Hell it may have been both of them. Sorry I'm rambling. I'll go now.

 

[Anonymous]

Large print books are for people who have eyesight problems. Such people are not necessarily stupid or illiterate.

In a secondary school library? Big black letters and only about thirty pages? Myopia my arse.

 

[carole]

Our school library had bound copies of 'Punch' going back to the 19th century, and Asterix in French

And our university library was heaven to me . . . all those books, on so many subjects (sigh)

Carole, who is something of a book addict and has a teeshirt with the slogan 'so many books, so little time'

 

[Anonymous]

Originally posted by intaglio
...Byzantium...was still immensely important up until the final fall in the 17th.

(begin pedantic respose)
15th... it fell to the turks in 1450, i recall...
(end pedantic response)

and just a sideline, how different was the eastern empire from the western? could you still call it 'roman'... i understand they referred to themselves as 'greeks' more than romans, but... (shrugs)


~c.

 

[intaglio]

Sorry, It was me being silly with that date. and 330 to 1453 ain't 1200 years either, sorry folks. Certainly up to the time of Justinian the Byzantines regarded the Roman Empire as theirs and though the main language was Greek they still refered to themselves as Rhomaioi.

 

[Anonymous]

A bit of both I guess, but I wonder, if the Roman empire had survived, would the World be more or less barbaric and where would we be technologicaly?

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the emperor Trajan was so worried about the effects of the development of new technology on the slave economy, that he issued several edicts banning and restricting it.

 

[Anonymous]

Give Trajan his due; he did invent the Commando comic...pity he made it a thirty foot tall marble column,but, hey, nobody gets everything right first time.

 

[intaglio]

Give Trajan his due; he did invent the Commando comic...pity he made it a thirty foot tall marble column,but, hey, nobody gets everything right first time.

Ah, the Commando comic with thr Fairbairn Sykes carefully threaded through the C. Memories of a misspent youth

 

[stu neville]

Ah, the Commando comic with thr Fairbairn Sykes carefully threaded through the C. Memories of a misspent youth

"I was a poacher on Lord Bagsworthy's estate: but come 1939, I became a SNIPER! This is my story..."

"Ach, zo, zer Englanders haff vun zis round, but ze viktory vill be ours!"

"Aiieee!"

Sorry. Flashback time.

 

[TheQuixote]

'Before Christ' replaced in books
02mar05

"BEFORE Christ" has been written out of some history books in NSW schools and replaced with "Before Common Era" in political correctness gone mad, the State Opposition said today.

Opposition education spokeswoman Jillian Skinner said 50,000 year-7 students who sat the English Language and Literacy Assessment (ELLA) test yesterday read an extract entitled "The Surveyor's Problem", which described an event which took place in 590 BCE.

A footnote to the extract explained BCE means "Before Common Era".

"It appears that 'Before Christ' has been written out of our history books by the Department of Education in the Carr government," Mrs Skinner said.

"This is political correctness gone mad."

"Before Common Era" is used by some historians but Mrs Skinner said most parents would expect their children to be taught to use `Before Christ.'

"You ask the average mum and dad out there how they refer to time and calendars, they will use Before Christ (BC)," she said.

Education Minister Carmel Tebbutt agreed the extract originally used "BC"but it had been changed to "BCE".

"My own view is that the text should not have been changed," Ms Tebbutt told Parliament.

"It should have been left as 'BC' with a footnote explaining that `BCE' is an alternative.

"I've asked the department to ensure that in the future this type of change is not made to texts."

The Courier-Mail

 

[AsamiYamazaki]

Mind you, according to the US Merriam-Webster online dictionary, CE also means Christian Era (and is listed as a definition before Common Era), which is obviously far easier for boring dolts to understand than AD.

Therefore, maybe CE should be marketed as a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

 

[Anonymous]

In amongst all the ranting and raving against the PC-ness this/anti-Xtian that of the 'new terms', a simple fact seems to have escaped notice.

The CE/BCE notation is ALREADY in common use among historians.

Has been for YEARS now.

I read a lot of history (admittedly nearly all of it about China), and the CE/BCE notation is STANDARD in the vast majority of the history texts I own. (Certainly it's the notation used in every history book I own that was first published within the past ten years.)

This isn't about western nations being forced to push Xtianity into the background for the sake of politeness or PC-ness. (That's just yet more Xtian Siege Mentality BS. Really. 'Ooh poor little Baby Jesus, everybody wants to do Him down!' )

It's actually about attempting to allow historians and archeologists from a variety of different cultures to discuss their subjects using a common frame of reference.

It isn't perfect, but a culturally-neutral term IS required if historians and archeologists from western and oriental backgrounds (here meaning China and Islam and any other culture that doesn't use the western calender) are to communicate effectively with each other about their work.

And that being so, it is essential that kids be taught the terminology in school.

 

[ENTIANONMULTI]

i would suspect it also to be more historically accurate after all if the year 1 AD was meant to be the year of christ's birth then finding out it wasn't in 1 ad but possibly 3 bc etc would mean a change could make sense, besides BCE and CE are still Anglocentric, how long before pm and am get changed?

 

[rynner2]

...besides BCE and CE are still Anglocentric, how long before pm and am get changed?

Ummm, I thought AM and PM were Latin terms.... :?:

 

[ENTIANONMULTI]

so was AD anno Dommine

 

[ramonmercado]

BC change was not PC, museum says
A Somerset tourist attraction has denied changing the way its exhibits are dated for reasons of political correctness.
Cheddar Caves Museum is using Before Present (BP) labels rather than Before Christ (BC) because it is easier to understand, a spokesman claimed.

"We'd still use AD and BC when a piece can be dated, but BP when its age is effectively prehistoric," he said.

BP dating is a year-numbering system counting back from 1950.

Although not usually used in museums, it is used by scientists when carbon dating.

Cannibalism

Hugh Cornwell, director of the Cheddar Caves museum said the last thing he wanted was to cause any offence.

"We have had more than 200,000 visitors to the museum since it opened and about one-in-ten sign the visitors' book," he said.

"There is about one comment about the use of BP per thousand visitors.

"If anything I'm surprised we don't get more comments about the portrayal of cannibalism in society."

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 407614.stm

Published: 2005/11/04 15:06:40 GMT

© BBC MMV

 

[Mal_Adjusted]

greets

Hugh Cornwell, director of the Cheddar Caves museum said the last thing he wanted was to cause any offence.

i wondered what hugh was up to these days - not that i liked the stranglers very much!

mal