X-Factor - O Ye of little faith. (Ref PM; this subject.) There are lots of people here with esoteric interests that are (or would be) interested in this. Thanks for the "heads up" though. I've got some buddies attending an event this weekend (no access to news/internet) that will appreciate learning this when thay get back to the real world. Medieval politics make for a fascinating study. Let's see what conclusions we can draw from this incident.
1. Secular power (Philip) trumps spiritual authority (Clement) every time. (Right and dead is still dead. Swords have an immediacy pens will never achieve.)
2. Don't get involved in money lending with individuals of dubious character who are likely to resent their debts - especially politicians with armies (and sub-prime holders of ARMs
).
3. Secret documents proclaiming innocence don't help when you're tied to a stake. (Though I'm sure Clement slept easier knowing he'd "done his duty for De Molay's immortal soul".)
4. Pragmatism (Clement) is a better indicator of survival potential than principle (De Molay). (Moral courage and political ambitions/ability are usually mutually exclusive conditions.)
5. Being exonerated after 700 years is cold comfort when your ashes are blowing in the wind.
6. Human nature hasn't changed. An understanding of history and politics is essential for any student of UW. After all - the job is about influencing people without getting killed in the process.