| Lys
Changes History, Part 3
By 119694_avalanche Press
May 2007
119694_avalanche Press VP Lys Fulda recently
asked us, "If you could change one moment
in history what would it be and why?"
Our first
and second
entries in this series ran earlier. Here,
our answers continue.
William Sariego's Answer
It is hard to give an unequivocal answer
to this question, on many grounds. A leading
scientist once spoke of time as a flowing
river whose course could not be easily altered.
Toss in a pebble and make a sudden splash
that quickly dissipates, or build a makeshift
dam which might alter its course briefly,
or simply slow its flowing to its destination.
I am not convinced changing a single event
would have that great an impact on what would
follow. Would assassinating Hitler on the
eve of Munich have stopped World War II, with
the Nazi Party so determined to “avenge”
Versailles? It would have simply altered how
Round Two of what Charles De Gaulle called
the 30 Years Conflict would begin.
If I had been among the first submissions,
for my single event I would have chosen the
assassination of Franz Ferdinand. However,
since that has already been taken I will not
bother to simply support Dr. Bennighof’s
assertions. Instead, I will choose not a single
event but a series of unfortunate events during
the 1920s in the fledgling Soviet Republic:
the power struggle between Leon Trotsky and
Joseph Stalin. Its outcome had a great impact
on the Soviet Union, the world, and my own
life.
On a popular level Trotsky had been identified
with Lenin and seen as a likely successor.
Stalin was a party functionary unknown to
the public during the early years. Trotsky
would emerge from the Civil War with a great
deal of glory but no real power. Stalin, ever
the politician, would accrue much “behind-the-scenes”
muscle during the war years. When the last
of the Whites were crushed he was able to
capitalize on fear of Trotsky’s alleged
“Napoleonic” tendencies to build
a Triumvirate along with Kamenev and Zinoviev
(two other key Bolsheviks) against him.
Trotsky was increasingly marginalized after
Lenin took ill, and the crisis came to a head
after Lenin’s death. Lenin’s Testament
denouncing Stalin was written off as a product
of his illness and the Politburo suppressed
the document. Trotsky, to maintain Party unity,
went along. Even so, he would become the head
of the ineffective Left Opposition to Stalin.
The one concrete way to overcome the Triumvirate
would have been to use the Red Army, which
still owed its loyalty to Trotsky. He refused
to use force to take over the state which
he helped build. Eventually Kamenev and Zinoviev
would join him in struggle against Stalin,
but by that time it would be too late. Members
of the Left Opposition would be exiled or
forced to recant. A decade later came the
Purges.
Would the Soviet Union have been better
with Trotsky at the helm? Doubtless it would
have. Would Socialism have worked? That is
still conjecture. Trotsky was not a saint
and could be quite ruthless in pursuit of
a goal, as evidenced by some actions in the
Civil War. Still, his humanity has been well
attested by contemporaries such as American
journalist Max Eastman and key biographers
such as Issac Deutscher. A Soviet Union not
wracked by brutal, forced collectivization
and the Purges would have had a positive impact
on the world, whether or not the state would
have withered away and a truly classless society
resulted. For me, had Comrade Trotsky prevailed,
I certainly would not have to waste time explaining
what I am not, but could simply espouse my
philosophy when I tell someone that I am a
Marxist.
William Sariego
Game Designer, 119694_avalanche Press
Susan Robinson's Answer
My history teacher at Robert E. Lee High
School in Montgomery, Ala., was one of the
best instructors I ever had. Coach Ward (he
also coached football) made American history
come alive with his great stories, and he
didn’t even have to use the textbook.
Before Coach Ward’s class, I thought
of history as kind of dry and boring. After
all, previous teachers had required me to
memorize the Bill of Rights and that sort
of thing. Coach Ward changed my view of history.
Sure, I always had known it was important,
but he knew all the juicy details behind the
events and made every fact memorable.
Despite my enthusiasm sparked by Coach Ward
— or maybe because of it — it
is tough to pick just one moment in history
that I would change. I’ve spent several
days ruminating on this topic. First I thought
about how Sept. 11, 2001, has changed this
nation and how its effects are rippling through
the rest of the world. However, for many Americans
going about their daily lives, the effects
are minimal.
But there was a time when life for many Americans
was sheer hell: the Civil War years. Can you
imagine what it would be like to have war
tearing your nation apart from within? The
conflict resulted in the deaths of almost
1 million people, including thousands of civilians.
The South was devastated, and the aftermath
lingered for years and years.
I think about how different our nation might
be now if the North and the South had resolved
their differences peacefully. Imagine the
strength we would have gained from remaining
united instead of turning against each other.
Think about all the time, energy and resources
that would have been directed elsewhere. How
much further would we have come as a society?
I also wonder if we would be so quick to
go to war in the 21st century if we had steered
clear of civil conflict in the 19th century.
Is it possible that sometimes we learn the
most important lesson from what doesn’t
come to pass?
Speaking of lessons, I bet Coach Ward pondered
these questions, too, even if they weren’t
part of our coursework. I don’t know
if my 16-year-old brain was ready for such
a weighty topic back then. But if you by chance
are reading this, Coach Ward, I’d love
to talk about history with you again.
Susan Robinson
Production Director, 119694_avalanche Press |
