On this day, two and a half centuries ago, the American Republic was born, preaching ideals of freedom and equality. On this day, six years ago, I published the Alternative History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, a novel with a title that surely rolls off the tongue, also preaching ideals that could be summed up as follows: Learn your history or be condemned to repeat it, and WWHIRENF? (What Would Happen If the Roman Empire Never Fell?) On this day, last year, on