Seeing all the uprising, the general crises, etc., which revolutionary year do you feel it is more like? Feel free to suggest other "sweeping change" years if you want. I left 1776 and 1789 off the list as they seemed too narrow, but am open to argument. Understandably, both of my choices are fairly Euro-centric, so if you've got something that's a better fit outside my blinders, I'm also interested in hearing that.

Those of you who heard me talk about the first assignment I had for the new job will know why I noticed this article about how the use of date rape drugs is less common than most think.

There are a number of caveats there, including the difficulty in testing for GHB and Rohypnol, and I suspect it is one of those cases where the moment something is big enough to get mainstream attention, the malefactors have moved on to something else.

Going back in time, we have an argument from Duane W. Roller's Cleopatra: A Biography that the legend of Cleopatra the femme fatale is actually the result of Roman propaganda. It sounds like an excellent book, and I might just have to pick it up.

One of the stories/episodes for the play we're possibly putting together for the Fringe involves family and something resembling the whole idea that people shouldn't raise their own children. I know Plato goes into this some in the Republic (which is what I am riffing off of here). Does anyone know if there's a decent quote connected to it?

For instance, "Who Guards the Guardians?", associated with the problem of the Guardians and the Noble Lie.

Is there one associated with the corruption possible with raising your own children?