http://tspwiki.com/index.php?title=1549
Here are some one liners...
'The End of Humanity as We Know it.' The Beginnings of SkyNet -- The Portuguese introduce Christianity and gambling to Japan... specifically card games. These card games will become the basis of a modern company that will warp the brains of our helpless youth! Nintendo.
The Treason of Assembly and the First Act of Uniformity -- The Right of Assembly becomes a treasonable offense after 1 hour and the Book of Common Prayer is introduced.
'Lovesick Grass:' Tobacco Arrives in China -- Even though there is a trade ban against the Portuguese, essential products still get through... like tobacco. I also talk about the Chinese providing essential products to the West and the problems that causes.
'The End of Humanity as We Know it.' The Beginnings of SkyNet
When the Portuguese land in Japan they bring along a number of western traditions: Christianity, clocks and gambling in the form of playing cards. The Japanese object to Christian missionaries so they eventually ban them along with clocks and gambling but it turns out that the Japanese like gambling. Even though Western cards will be banned, inventive Japanese entrepreneurs will create their own card deck... the Hanafuda (hah-nah-foo-dah) cards. Like the Western card deck they have four suits but these relate to the four seasons and not four kings. The rules for playing are different but what the Japanese find best in the new game is clear.... gambling. Eventually the Japanese government will catch on and ban these cards too. It will do no good. Gambling with Hanafuda cards will go underground and remain so until 1885. [1]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
Keep an eye on the Hanafuda cards. They will become the basis for a modern company that will take over the world... Nintendo... which will open its doors in 1889 selling Hanafuda cards. [2] I'm not kidding. Someone who is kidding a little is Seth Rogan, co-author of "Console Wars." He comments on the fight between Nintendo and Sega Genesis...
Keep an eye on the Hanafuda cards. They will become the basis for a modern company that will take over the world... Nintendo... which will open its doors in 1889 selling Hanafuda cards. [2] I'm not kidding. Someone who is kidding a little is Seth Rogan, co-author of "Console Wars." He comments on the fight between Nintendo and Sega Genesis...
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- Nintendo was king of home videogame entertainment systems, then Sega came in and was a contender for the crown. Sega almost toppled Nintendo with their subversive and more adult-oriented games, and these games have led us to a world where GTA (that is, Grand Theft Auto) and Call of Duty are the top games, and the next step is to have the games incorporate stuff about us and our personal lives, and then sentient technology will inevitably disassociate from mankind and some robot like Skynet will rise up and destroy us all. Hence: the 'Console Wars' between Nintendo and Sega is what began a series of events that will lead to the end of humanity as we know it. [3]
The Treason of Assembly and the First Act of Uniformity
King Edward the 6th of England, through his regent Edward Seymour, makes it high treason to remain assembled for more than 1 hour after being directed to disperse by authorities. The penalty for high treason is death but in a few years the penalty will be reduced to a felony. King Edward also brings uniformity to the Church of England, issuing: "The Book of the Common Prayer" which must be used for services. The penalties for non-compliance are progressive: A first offense means losing the respect of the King in all appointments and benefits. Penalties for subsequent violations build until one is treated as a dead man, distributing his property and spending the rest of his life in prison. Compared to previous legal penalties this is quite enlightened. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
Just FYI... King Edward was 12 years old at the time. He wasn't doing anything. His regent was doing everything. And frankly, the legislation supporting the Book of Common Prayer was just a "me too" endorsement of something the Church of England was already doing. The Church of England had been trying various services and they came to a compromise. I'm told that compromise is good... but not good enough for the true believers. It was a reverse-Darwinian process: punishing the strong and rewarding the faint of heart. When King Edward died, the whole system was turned on its head because his half-sister, "Bloody" Mary, was a solid Catholic. They didn't call her "Bloody" for nothing. She remembered who was strongest on the other side of this tug-of-war for the soul of England and Ireland. [9]
Just FYI... King Edward was 12 years old at the time. He wasn't doing anything. His regent was doing everything. And frankly, the legislation supporting the Book of Common Prayer was just a "me too" endorsement of something the Church of England was already doing. The Church of England had been trying various services and they came to a compromise. I'm told that compromise is good... but not good enough for the true believers. It was a reverse-Darwinian process: punishing the strong and rewarding the faint of heart. When King Edward died, the whole system was turned on its head because his half-sister, "Bloody" Mary, was a solid Catholic. They didn't call her "Bloody" for nothing. She remembered who was strongest on the other side of this tug-of-war for the soul of England and Ireland. [9]
'Lovesick Grass:' Tobacco Arrives in China
The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty distribute tobacco as they march across the country, fighting off the Mongols and enforcing the trading ban at various Chinese ports. Apparently the ban on trade with the Portuguese does not include tobacco. The Chinese call it "Lovesick Grass" because it gives one a dizzy feeling of well-being similar to how one feels when one is lovesick. It soon becomes clear that the demand for tobacco from the New World rivals the demand for silver. The Chinese are writing books filled with advice on how to smoke. It is all the rage. Along with sugar cane, tobacco becomes the cash crop of the New World. [10]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
I must credit the book "1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created." I am drawing much data directly from it. The evidence of tobacco reaching China was established when several pipes were found and dated to 1549. The Chinese laws against piracy were never successful because the West simply had too many products that the Chinese really, really wanted. Nowadays the reverse is true. With low-priced goods being snapped up by eager Western buyers, even low-income consumers can get a taste of what the rich enjoy such as DVD players and GPS devices. The flip side is that it sends dollars to a regime that oppresses and overworks its factory employees to the point of suicide. But people must have their Smart Phones at affordable prices... even the Chinese. [11]
I must credit the book "1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created." I am drawing much data directly from it. The evidence of tobacco reaching China was established when several pipes were found and dated to 1549. The Chinese laws against piracy were never successful because the West simply had too many products that the Chinese really, really wanted. Nowadays the reverse is true. With low-priced goods being snapped up by eager Western buyers, even low-income consumers can get a taste of what the rich enjoy such as DVD players and GPS devices. The flip side is that it sends dollars to a regime that oppresses and overworks its factory employees to the point of suicide. But people must have their Smart Phones at affordable prices... even the Chinese. [11]
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