What if????

[klr]

What if horses had survived in the Western Hemisphere?

That's a mighty big "what if?". Jared Diamond scale "what if?" in fact. Have you read Guns, Germs and Steel?

[Gawdzilla Sama]

What if horses had survived in the Western Hemisphere?

That's a mighty big "what if?". Jared Diamond scale "what if?" in fact. Have you read Guns, Germs and Steel?

Nope. But I could modify the question.

What if the Western Hemisphere had a domesticated draft animal that was commonly available? (Pre-Columbian)

[klr]

What if horses had survived in the Western Hemisphere?

That's a mighty big "what if?". Jared Diamond scale "what if?" in fact. Have you read Guns, Germs and Steel?

Nope. But I could modify the question.

What if the Western Hemisphere had a domesticated draft animal that was commonly available? (Pre-Columbian)

That's one of the big questions that Diamond tackles: The lack of suitable animals to be domesticated (and good crops) was an enormous handicap for American, sub-Saharan African and other peoples. There were other factors as well of course, hence the title of the book.

Stepping down a level, I've always felt that Britain being an island was one of the underlying factors in the success of the British empire. Island => seafaring nation => ... 70% of world's surface is water => ...

But for now, it's for me.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

That's one of the big questions that Diamond tackles: The lack of suitable animals to be domesticated (and good crops) was an enormous handicap for American, sub-Saharan African and other peoples. There were other factors as well of course, hence the title of the book.

Stepping down a level, I've always felt that Britain being an island was one of the underlying factors in the success of the British empire. Island => seafaring nation => ... 70% of world's surface is water => ...

But for now, it's for me.

Islanders are better sailors. People with grumpy neighbors are better diplomats. The Mongols were great horsemen because the Steppes is a horse paradise. Diamond made money saying these things?

[klr]

That's one of the big questions that Diamond tackles: The lack of suitable animals to be domesticated (and good crops) was an enormous handicap for American, sub-Saharan African and other peoples. There were other factors as well of course, hence the title of the book.

Stepping down a level, I've always felt that Britain being an island was one of the underlying factors in the success of the British empire. Island => seafaring nation => ... 70% of world's surface is water => ...

But for now, it's for me.

Islanders are better sailors. People with grumpy neighbors are better diplomats. The Mongols were great horsemen because the Steppes is a horse paradise. Diamond made money saying these things?

Well, he said a lot more than that . Anyway, you should read the book. Everyone should as a matter of fact.

Ah! There are my slippers. I knew I'd find them eventually. Time to get dressed and head off to work.

[Clinton Huxley]

What if...... Constantinople had fallen to the Arabs in the 7th Century......?

Byzantine Empire - fascinating stuff. Glorious, tragic, brutal, ridiculous and a bit mad all rolled into one.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

What if Columbus had fallen off the edge of the world?

[klr]

What if...... Constantinople had fallen to the Arabs in the 7th Century......?

Byzantine Empire - fascinating stuff. Glorious, tragic, brutal, ridiculous and a bit mad all rolled into one.

The Empress Theodora covers all of that just by herself I think: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodora_(6th_century)

Now, what if the Franks had not defeated the Muslims at Tours in 732?

Or William the Conqueror wasn't, you know ...

[Clinton Huxley]

What if King Harold had been 6 inches shorter...?

[Trolldor]

What if Lenin had been able to voice his disapproval of Stalin?

[Brian Peacock]

What if Lenin had been able to voice his disapproval of Stalin?

...or if Stalin had been a nice bloke!?!

[klr]

What if Lenin had been able to voice his disapproval of Stalin?

...or if Stalin had been a nice bloke!?!

Good one.

Although being serious for a minute: I think we'd probably have never heard of him, and not just because he might never have been called 'Stalin'.

Odd how so many communist revolutionaries had assumed names: Stalin, Lenin, Trotsky, Molotov ...

[Geoff]

What if horses had survived in the Western Hemisphere?

Recent news with kind of a tie-in to that one:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7926235.stm

Horses were domesticated much earlier than previously thought, according to a team of researchers.

They found evidence suggesting that the animals were used by a culture in northern Kazakhstan 5,500 years ago.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

What if horses had survived in the Western Hemisphere?

Recent news with kind of a tie-in to that one:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7926235.stm

Horses were domesticated much earlier than previously thought, according to a team of researchers.

They found evidence suggesting that the animals were used by a culture in northern Kazakhstan 5,500 years ago.

Less than a thousand years after the Creation? Gawd is truly great.

[Ian]

What if the Schlieffen Plan had succeeded, and Germany was able to force a settlement to end the war on the western front in autumn, 1914?