Cost of Glory - Alex Petkas

Latest Episodes:

113 - Cato and his Stoicism: w/ Johnathan Bi Oct 03, 2025

Show notes

A conversation with Johnathan Bi (Cosmos Institute, The Great Books podcast) for a deep dive into Stoicism through the life and philosophy of Cato the Younger.

We explore:

Why Stoicism continues to attract modern audiences
Jonathan’s personal journey with Stoicism—and why he ultimately turned to other philosophies
Nietzsche’s critique of Stoicism as a coping mechanism
How Cato embodied Stoic principles (and where he may have fallen short)
The tension between Stoic theory and Stoic practice in figures like Seneca and Marcus Aurelius

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Website: https://costofglory.com
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112 - The Psychology of Envy and the Fall of Caesar: w/ Rob Henderson Sep 23, 2025

Show notes

A conversation with Rob Henderson — Air Force veteran, psychologist, and author of the bestselling "Troubled".

In this episode:

Rob's journey from foster care to Cambridge and lessons about status, envy, and human nature
The psychology of envy and jealousy - from Julius Caesar's assassination to modern politics
Difference between dominance and prestige in human behavior
Why envy is one of the most powerful yet unacknowledged human emotions
How these dynamics shape personal relationships and society
Why men are drawn to history and the Great Man theory
What academia misses in its focus on present-day issues
Luxury beliefs, status games, and why successful people downplay hard work
Attention spans in the digital age and effects of TikTok and short-form media
Why biographies and long-form stories matter for character development
How reading about great and troubled historical figures helped Rob navigate teenage hardship
Insights on history, psychology, and the hidden forces shaping society

Subscribe to the Cost of Glory newsletter for detailed maps, images, and analysis of this pivotal moment in ancient history: https://costofglory.substack.com/

Get in touch at:
Website: https://costofglory.com
X: https://x.com/costofglory

111 - Caesar's Civil War III: Came Saw Conquered Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

Part 3 of 3 of Caesar's Civil War series. From triumph to near-disaster. Caesar's Egyptian entanglement transforms him from a glorious victor to a desperate challenger. In this episode:

Pompey's assassination in Egypt and Caesar's unexpected grief over his former ally's death
Cleopatra's legendary entrance in a bed-sack and her political seduction of Caesar
The brutal urban warfare trapping Caesar in the palace quarter for six months
The burning of the Great Library during the harbor battles—400,000 volumes lost
Caesar's desperate swim to safety while clutching precious documents above water
Young King Ptolemy XIII's tragic fate and the consolidation of Cleopatra's power
The lightning campaign against Pharnaces in Asia—"Veni, Vidi, Vici"
The veterans' mutiny outside Rome and Caesar's masterful psychological manipulation
Cato's final stand in Africa and his defiant suicide
The decisive Battle of Thapsus and the strategic genius of fighting on narrow ground
The massacre of surrendering enemies as Caesar's clemency finally fails

As Caesar recounts, the Republic's future dictator came very close to destruction in the palaces and canals of Alexandria. While Rome descended into chaos under Mark Antony's drunken rule, Caesar fought for his life against war elephants and Numidian cavalry, transformed by his liaison with the living goddess Cleopatra. The man who emerged from Egypt was no longer merely a Roman general, he had consorted with divinity and fathered the son of a pharaoh.

As Cicero wrote in frantic letters to Atticus: "Where am I to look for solace?" The final campaign that would cement Caesar's supremacy began with the most dangerous gamble of his career.

Works Cited: (Affiliate links - support the show!)

Gareth Sampson, The Battle of Pharsalus
Matthias Gelzer, Caesar: Politician and Statesman
James Froude, Caesar: A Sketch,
Raaflaub (ed.) Landmark Caesar

Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business. Powered by Shokworks.

Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

110 - Caesar's Civil War II: Bloody Pharsalia Jul 11, 2025

Show notes

Part 2 of 3 of Caesar's Civil War series. After his lightning conquest of Italy, Caesar faces his greatest challenge yet as Pompey masses a vast army in Greece. In this episode:

Caesar's second dictatorship and revolutionary reforms in Rome—citizenship grants, debt relief, and restoration of the proscribed
The dangerous winter crossing of the Adriatic, splitting his forces against Pompey's naval supremacy
The siege of Dyrrhachium and Caesar's ambitious 17-mile circumvallation to trap Pompey
The catastrophic defeat that nearly ended Caesar's career—his worst loss yet
The brilliant strategic retreat showcasing the iron discipline of Caesar's veterans
Young Curio's tragic death in Africa, highlighting Caesar's reliance on inexperienced lieutenants
The fateful convergence at Pharsalus as both armies march into Thessaly
The decisive moment when Caesar's hidden fourth line shattered Pompey's cavalry charge
The fall of the Roman Republic as 15,000 Romans died by Roman swords

Caesar's own account reveals a commander pushed to his absolute limits, saved only by the loyalty of soldiers who would "rather eat tree bark than let Pompey slip through our fingers." The battle that destroyed the old Republic hinged on a single morning's decisions, proving that world history sometimes turns on the choices of one man in command. As Caesar stood over the carnage at Pharsalus, he reportedly said: "This is what they chose. After so many deeds in the service of my country, they would have me, Julius Caesar, condemned as a criminal, unless I sought the protection of an army."

Works Cited: Gareth Sampson, The Battle of Pharsalus Matthias Gelzer, Caesar: Politician and Statesman James Froude, Caesar: A Sketch, Raaflaub (ed.) Landmark Caesar. (Affiliate links - support the show!)

Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business. Powered by Shokworks.

Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

109 - Caesar's Civil War I: Breakdown Jun 04, 2025

Show notes

Part 1 of 3 of Caesar's Civil War series. The die is cast—Caesar crosses the Rubicon and plunges Rome into civil war. In this episode:

The political crisis of 51-50 BCE as Caesar's enemies demand his recall from Gaul
Curio's shocking defection and proposal that both Caesar and Pompey lay down arms
The breakdown of negotiations and Pompey's fateful acceptance of command against Caesar
His lightning campaign through Italy as cities surrender without a fight
The siege of Corfinium and Caesar's revolutionary policy of clemency toward enemies
Pompey's strategic retreat to Greece, abandoning Rome and splitting the Republic
The brilliant Spanish campaign at Ilerda, showcasing Caesar's military genius
The brutal siege of Marseille and Caesar's appointment as Dictator

Caesar's own account reveals a man driven not by revolutionary ambition, but by wounded dignity and the desperate need to defend his honor against enemies who would destroy him through partisan prosecution.

As Lucan wrote of this cosmic struggle: "Of civil wars and worse waged on Thessalian fields / Of crime made law we sing, how a powerful people / Turned on its own heart its conquering hand."

The war that would transform Rome forever begins not with grand ideology, but with Caesar's refusal to submit to humiliation—and his enemies' fatal miscalculation of the man they sought to crush.

Works Cited

Kurt Raaflaub (ed.), The Landmark Julius Caesar
Matthias Gelzer, Caesar: Politician and Statesman
Erich Gruen, Last Generation of the Roman Republic

Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business. Powered by Shokworks.

Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

108 - Caesar 2: Law and Nature May 10, 2025

Show notes

Part 2 of 3 of the Life of Julius Caesar. In this episode:

Caesar forms the First Triumvirate with Pompey and Crassus, uniting Rome's most powerful men
His revolutionary consulship of 59 BCE bypasses Senate opposition through popular assemblies
The brilliant staging of the Gallic conquest, using allies and tribal conflicts as pretexts for expansion
His management of Rome through letters while commanding armies across Gaul
The death of Julia and Crassus fractures the political alliance holding Rome together
Vercingetorix's rebellion culminates in the decisive siege of Alesia, securing Gaul for Rome

Caesar transforms both Rome and Gaul forever through calculated strategy, personal magnetism, and relentless ambition—all while his enemies in Rome, led by Cato, plot his downfall and convince Pompey to turn against him, setting the stage for civil war.

Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business. Powered by Shokworks.

Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

107 - Caesar 1: Man of Destiny Apr 08, 2025

Show notes

The much awaited series on Julius Caesar begins, with the inaugural episode: "Man of Destiny".

In this episode:

Caesar's formative years in the shadow of Sulla's dictatorship
His early political boldness and refusal to divorce Cornelia
The capture by pirates and his merciless revenge
Caesar's rise through the ranks of Roman politics as Quaestor and Aedile
The Catilinarian conspiracy and Caesar's narrow escape from execution
His famous ambition: "I would rather be first man here than second at Rome"

A tale of charm, audacity, and calculated risk as a young aristocrat from a modest branch of an ancient family navigates the treacherous waters of late Republican politics. Caesar—stylish, charismatic, deeply in debt, and dangerously ambitious—sets himself against the legacy of Sulla while methodically building a coalition that would eventually transform Rome forever.

Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business. Powered by Shokworks.

Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

106 - The New Indiana Jones - w/ Dr. Brent Seales Mar 23, 2025

Show notes

A conversation with Dr. Brent Seales, professor of computer science at the University of Kentucky and a modern day Indiana Jones who has been using advanced technology to restore and redeem cultural and historical artifacts from the ravages of time.

In this episode:

The 'virtual unwrapping' of the Vesuvius scrolls
Unearthing an entire new Renaissance
Brent's encounters with Silicon Valley and some DOGE members
The long-term future of this project

105 - Breeding Future Statesmen: Interview w/ Kevin Dolan on the EXIT podcast Feb 26, 2025

Show notes

A conversation w/ Kevin Dolan on Kings of Sparta, Anti-Natalist Roman Aristocrats, and whether Christianity destroyed or saved Rome.

Join me at the Natal Conference, March 28-29, 2025, in Austin, TX! https://natalism.org

Find Kevin on X at https://x.com/extradeadjcb

104 - Heroic Struggles in Vietnam, w/ Doyle Glass Feb 13, 2025

Show notes

A conversation with Doyle Glass, author of Swift Sword, The True Story of the Marines of MIKE 3/5 in Vietnam, 4 September 1967.

Intro Story featuring BlackJack Mulligan.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackjack_Mulligan)

In this episode:
Mastering Fear in Combat

A lawyer's journey to becoming an artist and an author
The ambush begins: "The tree line stood up"
Clear headed leadership of Lieutenant Murray
The heroic Father Capodanno
Larry Peters' Sacrifice to Save His Squad

The powerful psychology of accepting death in combat
"With the Old Breed" war classic by Eugene Sledge

Man of Mystery Robert Benoist

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