Does Size Matter?

So, after reading chapter twelve, I would like to discuss the section in which Strayer wrote about the difference in sizes of fleets between China and Europe. All through elementary school we hear about "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue!" as it was the greatest voyage ever! But, obviously not! because the Chinese had a fleet of more than one hundred ships, and a crew within the thousands! Now, that's an amazing voyage! Forget the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria...Zheng He got this!

I mean, it just goes back to my usual problem with most history texts: "Blah blah blah, white men are awesome, blah blah blah, everyone else sucks," it really gets sickening. So, Strayer really does a nice job of trying to set it up evenly.

But wait wait wait! Let's go back to the title of this blog: Does Size Matter? Well, apparently not. Because the Europeans conquered much that they intended on doing so, as well as taking over the commerce and trade of the Indian Ocean. Zheng He basically bailed on all of China's voyages. They didn't have a point in which to accomplish through sailing the ocean blue (they felt they were awesome enough, and didn't need to boast anymore...if people wanted to share some more awesomeness with them, they will come). So, the Europeans swooped...and swooped they did! Because Europeans are notorious for fluffing their feathers. I think we all know how most of that ended up. We're here, aren't we?

The Europeans had this burning desire to spread, and push their Christianity onto the rest of the world, so they did. But staying true to present day politics, they also went into Asia and Africa for riches! Not oil this time, but spices, gold, silk, and much, much more! Yes, religion and money! White man's two favorite things. Why? Because that means power! We all know this, I am not writing anything revolutionary, innovative, nor demonstrating higher intelligence...I am stating the obvious because it is astonishing how very much history keeps repeating itself...over and over and over again.

Happy Thanksgiving!! ;)

Mongol Debate

Hello Classmates,

Since I am not able to attend tomorrow, I want to post my debate points here.

Here they are:

Key Points for Mongol Debate

For the Mongols:

-Mongols have great compassion for one another, and thus, their unity is strong. Many cultures could learn from their sense of togetherness, and community.

-Once ruling China, the Mongols adapted their cultures, including their Mandate of Heaven. In their capital, Karakorum, they had centers for many religions, allowing for an open and safe place for worship for all believers.

-One Mongol leader for China, Menggu, was particularly a great leader, as he embraced peace and safety for all his people. When locusts ruined vegetation in Xiang and Wei, many people wanted to flee their homes for lack of food, but Menggu convinced many to stay because he let them stay in their homes without paying the government their taxes. When he died, he left his sons nothing, because he had been such a selfless leader for all his people; thus, his sons were to adapt this very way of leading.

-Because Mongol rulers allowed exchanging of goods and skills between Europe and China, Europe was able to develop into the superpower they eventually became. Some may say this is bad, but hey! We all wouldn’t be here if this hadn’t happened, so I will make it a positive.

Against the Mongols:

-The mass slaughtering of the Russians. The Mongols went into Russia, and not only killed men, women, children, nuns, priests, and the like, but they also raped the women and girls of these families (sometimes in front of the families). And the way they killed the Russians was awful as well: setting people one fire, and with swords.

-Although, once in China, the Mongols did do great things, and some of the leaders that followed Chinggis Khan were peaceful, the fact of the matter is, that the Mongols did invade, kill, and overtake the Chinese peoples.

-Chinggis Khan’s saying was, “Whoever submits shall be spared, but those who resist, they shall be destroyed with their wives, children, and dependents . . . so that the others who hear and see should fear and not act the same.” That kind of sums it all up.

-Once they took over a civilization, they would make those people act as laborers: making roads, bridges, and carrying their supplies over long distances. They would also absorb these new people into their own army, and use them to take over other civilizations.

Mmmm...Mongolian Beef.

So, basically, my only knowledge of anything Mongolian is my favorite Chinese restaurant dish, Mongolian Beef...which, as y'all may have guessed, is not being knowledgeable at all. When reading chapter eleven, I was surprised by the Mongol Empire. It was the largest land-based empire in the world, yet it left very minimal cultural impact; it provided no new religion, language, or civilization. The empire spread from the Pacifica Coast of Asia all the way to the Eastern section of Europe. When the Mongols defeated a land, they would treat the people only as defeated and subordinate, unless they possessed some type of talent they could use for their own benefit. Like any other group to take over other peoples, the Mongols sound like a bunch of jerks. Buuuut, they were pretty amazing. They had less than one million people in their army, and Chinggis Khan was determined to get into China! That is awesome. Very sure of himself, and his people. And he did it! (this I did know, haha)

Once in China, the Mongols adapted some Chinese administrative policies and Confucian theories, but other than that, the Mongols seemed to just kind of chill out in the Chinese people's area. Sooo, I feel this comes back around to my favorite dish...

Maybe the Mongols swapped recipes with their new Chinese subordinates, and when the Chinese regained their power, they made a fortune off #32: Mongolian Beef when they migrated over here to modern day America.

Mmmm, and I am so glad they did. Spicy-sweet-beefy goodness!

Disappointment and Allah

As I read the documents section of the Quran, I could not contain my frustration and anger. I get so tired of reading (and hearing) about how religions run people's lives. In almost every religion, there is an oppression of women, minorities, and other religions. Although these are usually the early scriptures of any said religion, it is still something a startling number of people in the world follow.

In the Quran, they mention beating women "lightly" ..umm? No?! This, of course, is not any different from the Christian bible, which is the number one religion in the world, Islam being its closest second. To me, this is scary stuff. When you look back on the world's history (which we are doing with this class, duh!), any person can see how damaging religion has been. For. Every. Living. Creature. EVER.

Obviously, I am of the agnostic and/or atheist side of things, and in this day and age, I do not understand how more people are not. One does not need to be a straight-up atheist, but at least question these random beliefs you are brought up having.

Anyway, I digress. The Quran, talks about all his people cannot be in one harmonious community; that god/allah has purposefully segregated people into women, slaves, servants, and such, so, that he can test all of us. Such BS. Any self-respecting, intelligent person should ask this question: Who wrote the Quran? I am sure the answer is a man, or many men who were all of societal importance.

I am sorry if I have offended anyone, but hopefully this only opens more minds.

(and yes, I realize I go to a Catholic college...irony, in its finest form)

Marco! ....Polo!

Marco Polo is more than a fun childhood game to play in the family's swimming pool; Polo *supposedly* travelled through China, and wrote down his experience. I say "supposedly" here because in the reading it says that some scholars believe that he never reached China. His journals read in such a way that it seemed faked; there was no mention of the Great Wall, nor foot binding. This makes me laugh. How many times have humans nowadays embellished on a story just to make themselves more interesting? Millions, I am sure. That is all of Hollywood, Congress, and most of my friends. But in all seriousness, a guy back in the 1290's embellishing on an expedition is just classic!

Chris Columbus (we go way back, personal buddy of mine) even used his journals in his search for the places Polo visited, except on water...I wonder if he called out, "Marco?!" Thus, the beginning of a new water game. Anyway, we all know how lost ol' Columbus was, and now we know why maybe. Blind leading the blind, in my opinion.

So, although, this might have all been fabricated, I did enjoy some of Polo's writings. I loved how everyone in China seemed to be very friendly to outsiders, and women, alike. That is always a nice change of pace for these old-timey peeps...new peeps, too, really. A man who tries to cheat with a married woman is considered a rascal, which in of itself, is just a great term to use.

Oh, and don't get me started on the whorehouse description! Marco definitely had a good time there, as he described these women of the house in such a positive, and superior way. He said, "They exhibit themselves splendidly attired and abundantly perfumed . . . these women are extremely accomplished in all the arts of allurement" (349b). This guy is great, I am not sure where he ended up, China or somewhere else, but the dude had himself a good ol' time...especially for only being around seventeen (well, back then that was like forty-five).

Anyway, being a swimmer, and former swim instructor/coach, I will always hold a special place for Marco Polo.

Marco!



.....Polo!

Andes...Not Just a Delicious After-Dinner Mint Chocolate!

When I read about the ecology within the Andes, I thought it was funny that cocoa was indigenous to the eastern slope of the mountain range. Why? Because Andes chocolates are one of my favorite little treats when I go to a fancier restaurant, and they leave them with the check. Mmm, yum.

Anyway, what I found most interesting in this small section was the Norte Chico. They were one of the world's first civilizations, yet I have never heard of them. We have learned that writing was an amazing technology to develop, so seeing that the Norte Chico lacked this, it demonstrates how this lacking leaves very little marks on history, opposed to more technologically advanced groups like the Incas, who I have heard about since I was a little tike.

Now, the Chavin religious movement was also very interesting, as it is known just as that. Not a particular civilization, but as this center for this religious movement. Within this city, class system was yet again, exhibited. Man, am I getting tired of reading about the inevitability of humankind being unkind to one another...they had all these wonderful things going in Chavin: artwork, ceremonies, great natural resources, structured housing, yet...of course! Only the higher class seemed to get to enjoy these benefits. Disgusting.

History Repeats Itself and It Hates Doing So...So Listen the First Time!!

As I was reading this chapter, I stopped on the small section about peasants in China. Within this section, all that kept running through my head was how much it sounded like America today. The poor, and most of the middle class have to pay taxes, work themselves to death, and many (in the past) were drafted into wars, or feel there is no other option but the military. Because of such hardships, a lot do easily fall into homelessness (begging, as written in this section), or into gangs...something extremely common nowadays. Just in the high school I used to work at, I would see so many great kids turn to gangs because it was seemingly easier than trying to make it in this society and economy. Anyway, this section reminded me, eerily so, of today's world, and the "impoverished" who strive to make a better life for themselves.

And don't even get me started on India's caste system!! That is the most degrading, humiliating, disrespectful ruling ever to be put in place! And it happens everywhere. In my Literary Theory class, we learned about Marxism, and how the rich will always be rich, and the poor will always be poor, and religions have been put in place a long time ago by other rich people to keep the poor satisfied with their lot in life...and you know what? I COMPLETELY agree. All societies have their religion that keeps the poor "happy," with the promise of that glorious afterlife, but India especially has a particularly cruel way of keeping that promise barely dangling in their poor's faces: reincarnation. Which!! I used to think was a cool idea, now that I know how it originated, no. thank. YOU!

Socrates, You So-Crazy!

When reading the excerpt about Socrates speaking before being put to death, I could not help thinking of an epic speech from a suspense film, or television show. Like, if Walter White was not just a meth cook and kingpin in Breaking Bad, his usual dialogue could easily be related to how epic Socrates' speech was. Socrates is obviously a much more important figure to us as a human race, but just the fact that he was cocky enough to say that his death did not affect him as negatively as it would the people of Athens; his leaving the city only hurt them, and he was only going along with what God had planned. Pretty ballsy. He also went on to say that humans were basically dumb compared to God, yet, he did not shy away from gloating about his own wisdom. God complex, much? Me thinks Socrates was the original Heisenberg....

And just to touch a bit on the chapter, I have to say that the Jews are pretty amazing. They are the most loyal followers ever. Look at what they have been through...Egypt, Babylon, the Holocaust, the list goes on! Yet, they are like, "uh-uh, we are here to stay, spread thinly amongst the world, with no real home base!" Not to mention, their religious beliefs were the roots for Christianity and Islam....I believe Alanis Morrissette said it best when she sang, "Isn't it Ironic?" Anyway, them Jewish peeps be strong, and I gotta respect that!

Here's to you, Judaism!

Alexander the Great!

As I read about Alexander the Great, and all that he accomplished, I thought, "Wow, he got a lot of shit done by twenty-four." Can y'all imagine conquering country after country, lands after lands, establishing one massive kingdom?! He said, "okay, listen dad (Philip), let's take this takeover of Greece, and expand it, like crazy-style." And for ten years he went on this expansion and conquering of  the west and south: Egypt, Anatolia, Afghanistan, and parts of India. I mean, he did this in his twenties. He may have felt like going out to the clubs, and drinkin'...but he said, "no way, I am making something of myself!" And now he is known as Alexander the Great!

I want to be called Meghan the Great! But, alas, I am twenty-seven and still finishing my bachelor's. Ah well, maybe I will publish a New York Time's Best Seller. Plus, I wouldn't be too good at divide and conquer and all that. 

I Want to be a Scribe!

After reading all about becoming a scribe, it gives me a new appreciation for the English language, as I am an English major. I have always loved being able to convey my thoughts, my imagination, and everything else creative and informative, onto paper. Back then, it was the best job a person could acquire, as it saved you from being poor, a soldier, or any other hard laboring job. Being a scribe spared you of these jobs because the written word was very vital in a culture's way of passing on present day messages, and stories from the elders.

Today, most every human can write in some form. Becoming a writer is not terribly important in this day and age; but if you transfer the meaning of being a scribe back then to the meaning of going to school in the present day, it carries the same weight. I think many feel that acquiring more knowledge, by attaining degrees, or certificates, almost guarantees a human a better life than those who opt out of such things. These people do usually end up in the military, or with a hard laboring job (serving tables, bar tending, construction, etc.).

Anyway, Egyptians...they are still tops in my book.

Pyramids, Scribes, and OJ Simpson. Oh My!

After reading chapter two, I couldn't stop thinking about pyramids. Pyramids are always associated with Egypt, of course, but they are also found in Mexican and South American regions. So, I thought, how could all of these regions have the same basic form for buildings? Then it occurred to me: did they build pyramids step by step? I think that after building the base, the workers/slaves must have climbed onto that part and built a new story, indented because they used the first story to stand on. Since all these civilizations are relatively established around the same times, I figured, this must have been an instinctual way of building these elaborate structures.

Along the lines of Egypt, it was interesting to read that they were definitely superior, socially and agriculturally, to Mesopotamia, who formed too many little cities, ruled by different kings, and who also did not have the resources that Egypt did because of the Nile. Because Mesopotamia seemed to be the older of the two, just by a bit, and I have heard so much about it throughout history classes, I thought that they would have been closer to success like Egypt, but after reading, that just wasn't the case. Also, I feel that they focused too much on social status, gender roles, and the rulings of such, to a point where it began to get in the way of just simply surviving; where Egypt focused on that as well, but also focused greatly of education, as seen in the "Be a Scribe."

Lastly, I definitely did not like how the Mesopotamians punished people based on class. As a working class man could hurt another working class man, and only get on lashing; but, if he were to hurt a man in a class above him he would get 60 lashings. I thought, "That is a bit dramatic, and ridiculous!" Buuuuut, then I realized OJ Simpson got away with a double homicide, solely based (for what I believe to be true) on his status as a famous football star and movie actor. Many present day celebrities, who have a much higher social standing than us, seem to get away with things like drug possession, under-age drinking, speeding, and even murder. It's ridiculous, and although it is not a written law, nor is it legal, they seem to have a sympathetic judgement in the eye of the justice system, just as the higher classes in Mesopotamia.

"I'm Every Woman, It's All in Meeeeee!"

I think the best thing I read this week was the modern day Paleolithic woman's interview, specifically when she spoke about taking on multiple lovers when she was married. I think that is exactly how people should live today. I completely believe that a human may find that one person they will completely fall in love with, and want to keep around all your life; but, I believe a human should have the option to experiment and feel out other lovers as well. I believe that keeps the first lover, number one, and at a healthy level for relationships. Having many lovers in addition to your husband, or main main lover, benefits more than just the sexual desires and experimental side of the wife, but at these times, also the hunting and gathering portion. Having multiple men bring and hunt things for you, is awesome. I can't even get a guy to give me a single rose, let alone a whole carabao! I loved reading about these early people earlier in the chapter as is, but the firsthand account really brought it home for me. How free she could even speak during the interview was so refreshing. Most people --ignorant people-- think that people who are not "civilized" are also very behind the times, but from this chapter, and interview, it is obviously the opposite. Maybe these people are behind the times when it comes to technology, but they are vastly ahead of a lot of us when it comes to equality and status. Many parts of the US still do not seem to understand these VERY basic principles...sad.

Prologue and Ch. 1

The first thing that struck me about our reading was the timeline we also discussed in class. Seeing how insignificant humans are in the grand scheme of events in this world's history really was, and is, an eye-opener. I have always been pretty humble about our place in this world, as I try to be environmentally conscious and I do not believe in any religion. But just seeing how late we came into existence was really amazing to me. Although the Cosmic Calendar showed it in layman's terms, reading the actual years affected me much more greatly; the Earth formed 4.5 billion years ago, yet we only came around 250,000 years ago! 

As I read about the earliest peoples, I really was drawn to the small section about Rapa Nui, which is known as Easter Island now. The people who lived on the island used up so much of the island's resources that they caused deforestation, consequently causing famine, population decline, and (the part I found most interesting) no way to get off the island because they had no wood to build the boats. I actually thought this little bit of information was kind of funny, to be honest. I felt as if it could have been in a Mel Brooks movie or something. 

Another fact I enjoyed reading about was that the San people were all equal. The women gathered more vegetation than the men hunted meat, causing them to have no dominant sex. The teenagers also engaged in sex, and female virginity was unknown, or better yet, not important. Even more importantly, marriages lasted, and happily so. There were no wife beatings, rape, nor double standards. So, basically, I felt as though humans went terribly backwards after this tribe.

Yay! I have a world history blog. Yahoooo.