September 12th.

For most Americans, this date is a milestone in self-reflection and picking up pieces, a flag in the sand for how we react to tragedy shortly after something loud and terrible blindsides us. And for most of us, it is simply the day after the worst attack on American soil.

Yet millennia ago, East and West clashed bitterly on the 12th of September, 490 BCE in the field of Marathon north of Athens. And the battle that ensued was a meteoric victory for the Western World, which Persian despots were threatening to snuff in its very cradle.

Continue reading “Book Review – The First Clash” →