I agree that if you have an overwhelming military, reputaion isnt that important. The thing is, if you aren't liked, you become a target. The first time I played Civ III, I decided to go to war with the romans (the reasons for this sin't important). My military was equal to theirs, so i decided to use a sneak attack to get the advantage (big mistake). I eventually wiped out all the Roman cities on my continentand was quite proud of myself. Unfortunately, every other civilization hated me (they were all furious), and over 90% of my military was in the southern half of my territory, since I had just finished wiping out the romans. The next thing I know, the Germans and Egyptians are both attacking me from the north. By the time I get any of my units there to defend my cities, I had lost half of my continent. The moral of the story is, unless you are far and away the most powerful civilization, try not to get the other civilizations TOO pissed off.