re: Worst Historical Disaster — Civil War or Second Great Awakening?

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Our involvement in the two world wars probably overshadows that by a good bit. Had we not gotten involved in the First World War, the European powers could probably have come to a more rational peace than Versailles and avoided the second.

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You could argue that WW1 was a huge bad move.

WW1 Germany wasn't Nazi's, they were a growing industrial powerhouse with a government a lot more similar to ours than the Brits were. Britain was itching to slap them down, before the Germans passed them by. They weren't at fault either, they supported an ally whose leader was assassinated.
If we didn't share a language and cultural heritage with the Brits, I could see us joining against the Brits instead.

The results of that left the tragedy that was postwar Germany, and led to the Nazis. Imagine all the scientific advances that came out of Germany, but with a strong, stable and prosperous republic instead of what it was becoming. I think the Marxist movement would have pissed out, the continent would be stable, and we'd be about 100 yrs more advanced now.