Don’t Be an Idiote…be a Competent and Responsible Citizen!

A citizen is a member of a state who owes allegiance to that state. The state’s government, in return, is responsible to protect that citizen. Around 500 BCE, Greek soldiers in Athens stopped fighting for monarchs and established their own city-state.

Greek citizen-soldiers Remember that only free, males of Greek ancestry could be citizens? Pericles, born in 495 BCE, was a prominent general and political leader. He was the model citizen-soldier.

The Greeks called their organized community of Greek citizens a “politeia”. That’s where the English word politics comes from. The Greeks did not like their fellow citizens who were unconnected, private persons caring more for their own personal concerns, than for those of the polis. The Greeks called these anti- social persons an “idiote”! Don’t be an idiote!

Roman citizen soldiers The Romans followed the Greek example. They revised the self rule structure based upon their Centurian citizen-soldier. Originally, only men from the Italian Peninsula could become Centurian citizen- soldiers creating the Roman Republic.

The Romans spoke Latin. The Latin word for city is “civis”, Civicus is Latin for “of a citizen.” Civis is the root word for civics and civic in English. The original citizen soldiers were replaced by soldiers recruited from throughout the Empire. In another 1,500 years, a third state would try self rule, based upon citizenship.

American citizen soldiers When colonial militias first opposed the British soldiers and mercenaries at Lexington and Concord, citizens were once again seeking to fight for the ability to rule themselves.

George Washington was a military and political leader to America, similar to Pericles and Athens.

Responsible citizens are involved in civic life. Today, civic life means to be concerned with the affairs of your community, rather than solely in pursuit of private or personal interests. Remember- don’t be an idiote!