What do あなた think about Romans verses Greeks?

So I was 読書 in my American Heritage book. It was talking about empires, and how they always fail in the end.
It 発言しました the Roman empire: "it's government became too centralized, too powerful, and too distant from the citizens that it simply overwhelmed them."
The romans always brag about their conquests and power, but really it was the cause of their downfall. So which is better, もっと見る power? I don't think so.