410 Barack H. Obama: The Unauthorized Biographyblack or dark, and he is described as a “black man” in some translations of the contemporary writer
Cassius Dio. But there are others who say that this was just a nickname, and that Pescennius Niger
was not African. After disposing of all of his rivals, Septimius Severus assumed power and founded
a dynasty that would extend through increasingly troubled times to include himself (193–211), his
notoriously cruel and vindictive son Caracalla (211–217), Macrinus (217–218), the monster
Elagabalus or Heliogabalus (218–222), and Alexander Severus (222–235).
SEPTIMIUS’ LARGER ARMY AND PAY HIKES START
THE GREAT ROMAN HYPERINFLATION
Because of his status as an outsider and a general, Septimius Severus decided to lean on the
praetorian guard in the Roman army, while freezing out many representatives of the Roman Senate,
where the leading oligarchs assembled. In order to win the loyalty of the Army, he substantially
increased the rates of pay, creating a very serious budget deficit that was the main cause
contributing to the beginning of hyperinflation. The hyperinflation which was launched by
Septimius Severus kept going for 300 years, and was one of the biggest causes of the final collapse
of the Roman empire and of western civilization itself. He also substituted equestrian officers for
senators in key administrative positions. Not surprisingly, Septimius Severus’ relations with the
Senate were very poor, and to compensate for this he had to appeal to the city mob as well as to the
army, which cost even more money. Septimius Severus also abolished the local regular standing
jury courts, which dated back to Republican times. He was also an energetic persecutor of
Christians and Jews.
Obama for his part has promised to increase the size of the United States Armed Forces by about
100,000 troops — a very sinister and hugely expensive detail which many of his fawning left-liberal
acolytes are incapable of comprehending. There are, however, widespread reports of grave
discontent and deep suspicion on the part of top generals and admirals towards the parvenu Obama.
How might Obama attempt to secure support from the Pentagon, or at least stave off a mutiny or a
military counter-coup? One way would clearly be to imitate Septimius Severus and radically raise
military pay rates, benefits, and bonuses in the form of a thinly disguised bribe for the officer class.
The record of the dynasty founded by Septimius Severus suggests that once a bidding war of this
type has begun it is almost impossible to stop, and often ends with tremendous political instability
as the monetary demands of the praetorian class become greater and greater, notwithstanding the
evident economic crisis of the empire.
CARACALLA’S POLITICAL REPRESSION
For our analytical purposes here, it will be convenient to compare Obama to the three most
important figures of the Septimius Severus dynasty, namely Septimius Severus himself, his son
Caracalla, and the notorious Heliogabalus. When Septimius Severus died, there was a violent
succession fight which ended when Caracalla succeeded in killing his brother Geta. Caracalla was
noted for lavish bribes to the praetorians, and also for his legendary cruelty, which was expressed in
the form of numerous assassinations of his real or imagined enemies and rivals. Michelle Obama
may find her own distant mirror among the strong-willed and ambitious women of the Severan
dynasty, beginning with Septimius Severus’s wife Julia Domna, who schemed and plotted to help
her husband become Emperor. Among the other influential women of this disastrous dynasty we
find Julia Maesa, sister of Julia Domna, and Maesa’s two daughters, Julia Soaemias, mother of the