re: Knowing What we Know now, does Gavrilo Princip pull the Trigger?

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think, judging by the state of affairs currently, that the Ottoman Empire going down will indeed have a longer lasting effect on the world.

Look at how unstable it is now without them in power. Hell, as bad as he was, Sadaam Hussein held a certain amount of stability in that region. I think that was the biggest mistake of WWI was getting rid of the Ottomans. Although, the Ottomans didn't have a very strong military and economy at the time so who knows if the empire would've stayed in tact anyway. Hindsight is 20/20 though.

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It crazy to look at the map and think how different the world was in 1913. Baghdad, Damascus, Jerusalem, Medina, Mecca, Constantinople --- all under the same stable rule. Now? No one would dream of that happening again.

Although I generally agree that the Ottomans involvement in WWi was of greater effect than Communism post WWII, there is an argument to be made.

Think of everything that came of it- the space race, the cold war, nuclear deterrants, Berlin Wall, finally a diminished Russia post Cold War that is looking to return to its old glory (Crimea/Ukraine). Definitely all things still affecting us today.