In the twilight years of the Roman Republic, the ambitious politicians realized that the easiest way to stay in power was to give the people what they wanted — in this case, free bread and gladiator games. Today's politicians might be more sophisticated. They promise job creation, infrastructure projects, and tourism development. But it's really just another type of bread and circuses — lavishly spending government money to stay in office. Here are some ridiculous examples of wasteful government spending on bread and circuses.