All I can say about such bigoted and completely unsubstantiated claims is that I hope calls for his resignation are successful. Last month he went on record to say that the recent Japanese tsunami was just punishment from God. This would be offensive enough from a drunk in the street, but from the vice-president of the Research Council? Italian scholarship has no hope. Unlike the man shouting in the gutter, de Mattei apparently receives a salary of around €100,000 from tax-payers.
But it gets worse - or at least, more astonishing. The Daily Mail also picked up the story. They seem to be slightly confused about the issues involved, because apparently they interviewed some academics about whether or not homosexuality was prevalent in Ancient Rome (and received suitably dead-pan responses) before implying that yes, there did seem to be a lot of all this 'gay stuff' in Rome... and finishing with the awards given to de Mattei in recent years.
Historian Emilio Gabba, a leading light in Roman history, said: ‘It is highly improbable homosexuality led to the fall of the Roman Empire.’
Professor Lellia Cracco Ruggini, an expert on Roman history from Turin University, said: ‘There is no proof Rome had a high number of homosexuals. I can safely say Rome did not fall because it was gay.’ However research would seem to suggest homosexuality was rife in ancient Rome.
The 18th century expert Edward Gibbon wrote that ‘of the first 15 emperors, Claudius was the only one whose taste in love was entirely correct’.
Homosexuality is widely portrayed in ancient Roman art and was seen as acceptable 2,000 years ago.
Professor De Mattei co-operates with the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Historical Sciences and has been awarded the Order of Knighthood of St Gregory the Great in acknowledgement of his services to the Roman Catholic Church.I think words fail me. I've got to stop reading the Daily Mail.
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