Did the right side win the Persian Wars? Most classicists and defenders of the Western tradition will tell you that, of course, we should be glad the Greeks won. After all, winning the Persian War set off the cultural flourishing that gave us the Classical Age, and plus, if the Persians had won with their monarchy, they might have strangled democracy in its crib and gave us more one-man rule. And that's possible, but as a counter to that argument, let's consider three things. First, it's worth remembering that life under the Persians was pretty good, and if you look at the last 5,000 years of human history, you'll find a lot more successful and stable empires than you will democracies. Second, life under the Athenians wasn't so awesome, particularly if you were a woman or a slave, and their government was notoriously corrupt. And ultimately, the Athenian government derived its power not from its citizens, but from the imperialist belief that might makes right.