khaddy
khaddy t1_irhltyo wrote
Reply to comment by MassiveStallion in Did the first crusade impact significantly the war-making capacity of states like england, west and east francia? And did later crusades impose equal burdens, or was the distribution of this burden different for the 2nd and 3rd crusades? by Qazwereira
I meant mafia / organized crime as a group of (mostly men) who would use their strength, numbers, and organization (in the form of attacks on other people trying to live peacefully)... And furthermore that their growing power gave them confidence to increase their activities until they controlled a local area. Whether the "good" powers around them are a King, or a local government, the villagers nearby live by the rules that king or govt established, until the "mafia" gained enough power to undermine those rules and terrorize the people. Only those people who do what the mafia wants are left alone (pay protection money, or give up their harvest and women), others get attacked.
I suppose it's a stretch and I'm playing with words here but at its core, might makes right, and struggles for power are as old as time itself, and when the violent bands got big enough to undermine society, something had to be done with them.
khaddy t1_irg7s26 wrote
Reply to comment by swiftachilles in Did the first crusade impact significantly the war-making capacity of states like england, west and east francia? And did later crusades impose equal burdens, or was the distribution of this burden different for the 2nd and 3rd crusades? by Qazwereira
This feudal class sounds like any modern day mafia or organized crime syndicate. How strange to think that despite all our progress, not much has actually changed in many parts of the world.
khaddy t1_j2eni9d wrote
Reply to comment by ultra_casual in Brian May gets a knighthood in New Year Honours list by StephenHunterUK
Really makes you wonder tho, if the geniuses thru history were born today, would they still go into the same vocation? For all we know, Newton would have been a math-illiterate rock star or influencer!