askhistorians

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Pop culture sometimes preemptively declares the 21st century as "China's century". Which country (or countries) did commentators in 1880, 1900, or 1920 predict would be the economic, cultural and political powerhouse(s) of the 20th?	8
In the early days of civilian and military rocketry was there a risk that a space exploration launch might be detected and mistaken for a military launch? How did the relevant powers and keep each other in the loop?	8
"Keeping Germany down" is widely accepted as one of the justifications for the existence of NATO in the 20th century. Was that really a guiding policy for NATO all the way into the 80s/90s? In what ways did NATO structure or policy "keep Germany down" after the immediate post-war period?	8
The fate of the souls of one's family and friends seems to have been a concern of many religious 19th century Americans. How would a pious abolitionist contend with the idea of their slave-owning recent ancestors (parents?) going to Hell?	8
1050 CE: I'm a countryside farmer in what is now eastern France (Burgundy). Who do I consider a foreigner? Is a Christian in Dijon a foreigner? What about a Jew in Dijon? Or either in Paris? Is a guy in the next valley a foreigner? How does a foreigner become "one of ours?"	8
What was the reaction of Iranian thinkers & planners to the Arab Nationalist movement forming to their west? How did their attitudes change between the earliest appearance of Arab Nationalism through the mid 1900s?	8
How did indigenous American religious life in the U.S. change between the late 1950s and 90s? Did the emergence of national-level Native American activism coincide with a reassessment of the role of Christianity/non-native religion in indigenous life and history?	7
20th century film and TV often used Warsaw Pact weapons (AK47/AKM, SVD, Tokarev) as a visual shorthand for "bad guy". Were there weapons or clothing that signaled "bad guy" in medieval and early Renaissance manuscript art?	7
The labor movement and Civil Rights era in the United States produced a broad and long-lasting legacy of music and art informed by progressive politics. Besides Confederate monuments were there popular explicitly segregationist and "pro-boss" artistic genres?	7
20th century film & TV often used Warsaw Pact weapons (AK47/AKM, SVD, Tokarev) as a visual shorthand for "bad guy". Were there weapons or clothing that signaled "bad guy" in medieval & early Renaissance, art, especially manuscript art?	7

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