LindyAF
Well-known member
IIRC, a large part of the reason for this, was because the revocation of the 'citizen soldier' laws and ethos. At one point, all soldiers had been land-owners, and part of why the Roman Legions were so numerous and driven, was because the Legionaires had a stake in Rome.
The question of land grants to soldiers was definitely a wedge between the soldiers and the republic, although I thought the decline of the citizen soldier ethos was more associated with the decline of the Empire. I think a big part of it was just that, well, if you're tramping around Gaul for a few years, living and dying by someone's command, and he showers you in honor and glory, well, that's a lot more immediate and trustworthy an authority than some fat cat fucks sitting on their asses in Rome.
OK, so what's the problem with that? To my understanding, the thousands of affidavits could be used to argue for this position just as well. Why were the claims dismissed? Why was the evidence considered insufficient?
I'm not arguing there wasn't fraud, in fact I know there was at least one case (not one of Guiliani's) where a democrat activist was shown to be illegally harvesting ballots- and IIRC they're going to jail over it. I'm just saying that's what Guiliani alleged instead of fraud. I didn't follow any of the cases closely- imo it was clear what the outcomes were going to be, but I don't think any of the cases besides the Texas one actually alleged issues big enough to change the results. There was no smoking gun. The Texas one got dismissed by lack of standing.
I do think there was fraud, enough to change the results, but that view essentially comes down to that on election night Trump was winning pretty handily, up in all the important swing states, overcoming Biden's early lead in some states due to mailed in ballots. And then at midnight democratic counties in six swing states stopped counting (later though, that got retconned, and they never actually stopped counting) and then in the morning the votes they started counting again at 3am erased that lead. There's no smoking gun, there, no proof. Just, if I saw this happen in another country I'd think it was probably rigged there too.
But it's essentially like if a museum or something had it's diamonds go missing and now the janitor is driving a lambo. Yeah, he stole them. But "he obviously did it, come on" probably isn't going to hold up in even a sympathetic court.