Final Decision Quotes
Menander first originated the phrase. However, Julius Caesar made it famous, by stating it when he crossed the Rubicon River with his Legions and headed for Rome. He had passed the “point of no return.” It was forbidden for a Roman commander of legions to allow the legions under arms to come that close to Rome under the theory that no military commander could take over the government if his legions were at a distance from Rome. Caesar was indeed marching on Rome with his troops, and took over the government. The great phrase implied that the key action had been taken and the commitment made. The dice was thrown but no one know yet what the results would be. For Caesar, they turned out to be good. Dice was a very good metaphor for the era as Greek and Roman men played (and gambled) on dice games frequently. John Adams used a variant of the quotation in castigating President Taylor. See {622034}
Since Pope Francis was so modern in so many areas there were hopes among some Roman Catholic reformers that the Pope would change the age old, discriminatry prohibition against women being priests.
Cixi had been one of the many concubines of the Emperor and she bore a son who was first in the line of succession. The Emperor’s wife, Empress Zhen had no children but was the senior official of the Empire when her husband died. Instead of being rivals, Cixi and Zhen were very close friends so when it had to be decided who was to rule until Cixi’s son became of age, the women agreed that Zhen would see to the education and the training of the child and manage the court, and Cixi would manage the government and the Empire as regents for the child. However, in 1875, the boy died and there was no clear successor. Cixi with Zhen’s approval then issued this edict and in effect seized control of the entire empire of China.
Despite having passed the House and a majority of the Senate favoring McCain’s bill, a filibuster was led by a few holdouts from his own party. Patiently, McCain assembled sufficient Senate support to break the filibuster.
