Senator Jeremius Creosotius

Senator Jeremius Creosotius (68 B.C - 5 A.D) was a Roman Politician, Merchant and Philosopher. While most famous for his participation in the assassination of Julius Caesar shortly after his appointment as Senator, he was also a popular philosopher and writer in Roman society and spent several stints in Government positions across the emerging Roman Empire. His great-grandfather, Augustus Creosotius had participated in the crisis surrounding the Gracchus brothers land reform 70 years earlier.

Philosophy
Creosotius is known for his 'philosophical ambition', though he was highly controversial among Roman theologians and for centuries after, for his teaching of the 'virtue of drink', in which he claimed drink was the lifeblood of all human societies from the primordial era. In his pursuit to prove the natural abundance of alcohol, he consistently attempted to demonstrate it could be synthesized by stewing various combinations of common leaves and plant stems, to produce cocktails 'such as the cave dwellers drank'. Such products were reportedly bitter and caused several poisonings at his public demonstrations.

His writings were banned some time between 20-15 BC due to levels of public drunkenness in Rome, for which his teachings were blamed. He enraged contemporary thinkers with his famous drinking discussions, which he hosted from a table at his front porch and offered free wine to anyone who wished to hear his insights. One anonymous account describes such an event, 'He maintains his poise well enough after many jars of wine, even while his followers slump under the table he continues his ponderings. When we confronted him on the matter he hates, that his great "following" consists of peasants taken in by promise of free drink, he stroked his chin and replied "and what does this say about our world...you great men of words.". He imagines himself a thinker of the Greek tradition! He is nothing but the patron of drunkards, whoremongers and gluttons.'

Despite this contemporary opposition, and his later condemnation by the Christian faith, it is believed Cresotius was relatively popular among the Roman population in his day. He has since been cited favourably for his opposition to envy, moralising, superficiality and close-mindedness. Lathrap's famous quote about walking a mile in someone else's shoes before judgement, is widely credited to one of Creosotius' few recorded dictums.