/u/smurfyjenkins's posts in /r/askhistorians

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Did the USSR ever seriously consider invading a NATO member?

64 upvotes

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In a 1988 article, political scientist Scott Sagan claims that "the available evidence" suggests that the "United States would not have gone to war in the summer of 1940 had the Japanese restricted their attack to the British and Dutch colonies". Is it accurate assessment of the available evidence?

63 upvotes

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Apparently Nehru turned down permanent membership for India on the UN Security Council. What on Earth lead to this [seemingly] baffling decision?

46 upvotes

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Was British rule a cause of the repeated famines in India?

44 upvotes

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A few questions about mercenaries: (i) What motivated leaders/states to rely on mercenaries? Under what circumstances? (ii) Given that they are purely profit-motivated, how were mercenaries used efficiently? What kinds of actions? (iii) Why did mercenaries fall out of favor by the 19th/20th century?

43 upvotes

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Why were military leaders so convinced that offensive advantages were so much greater than defense prior to WWI and vice versa prior to WWII (at least in the case of French leaders)?

39 upvotes

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What's academic historians' take on cliometrics (the application of economic methods and theories to history)?

37 upvotes

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It's common in historical fiction for leaders of different factions to seek each other out during battle and basically duel until death. Are there any examples of this actually happening?

32 upvotes

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A recent Cracked article claims that Prohibition was a success -- was it really??

31 upvotes

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How did so many Middle-Eastern countries (Iraq, Syria, Bahrain) come to be ruled by minority religious sects?

20 upvotes

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Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
Did the USSR ever seriously consider invading a NATO member?	64
In a 1988 article, political scientist Scott Sagan claims that "the available evidence" suggests that the "United States would not have gone to war in the summer of 1940 had the Japanese restricted their attack to the British and Dutch colonies". Is it accurate assessment of the available evidence?	63
Apparently Nehru turned down permanent membership for India on the UN Security Council. What on Earth lead to this [seemingly] baffling decision?	46
Was British rule a cause of the repeated famines in India?	44
A few questions about mercenaries: (i) What motivated leaders/states to rely on mercenaries? Under what circumstances? (ii) Given that they are purely profit-motivated, how were mercenaries used efficiently? What kinds of actions? (iii) Why did mercenaries fall out of favor by the 19th/20th century?	43
Why were military leaders so convinced that offensive advantages were so much greater than defense prior to WWI and vice versa prior to WWII (at least in the case of French leaders)?	39
What's academic historians' take on cliometrics (the application of economic methods and theories to history)?	37
It's common in historical fiction for leaders of different factions to seek each other out during battle and basically duel until death. Are there any examples of this actually happening?	32
A recent Cracked article claims that Prohibition was a success -- was it really??	31
How did so many Middle-Eastern countries (Iraq, Syria, Bahrain) come to be ruled by minority religious sects?	20