Q4 USH BM Jakobi Martin-Howard

Posted by Jakobi Martin-Howard on Friday, June 1, 2012 at 10:44 pm

Project
http://whatifosama.blogspot.com/

Describe your Point of Divergence.
My point of divergence was, What if, Osama Bin Laden was killed in the Battle Of Jaji in May of 1987, during the Soviet War in Afghanistan. I chose to focus on this because I thought it would be unique to imagine a world, as well as a life to some without Osama Bin Laden, of course I couldn't touch on the topic of 9/11, but since that's what most know Osama for, many would never know who Osama Bin Laden was.
What is the future you envisioned resulting from the POD? (short summary)
I envisioned the future being a lot more peaceful. Muslim's wouldn't be looked at as aliens or outsiders, they'd be accepted all across America. Terrorism would be as common as well, Bin Laden was famous for his terroristic acts, and since him, terrorism has become more common. I believe if he was killed in 1987, many terroristic acts that took place, wouldn't have happened.
What did you like about this project? What was most challenging?
I liked the fact that we got to choose what we wanted to look into and what we wanted to focus on. Most projects are assigned, but this one was what ever we wanted it to be. The most challenging part about my project, was not talking about 9/11. 9/11 was a big part of Osama Bin Laden and his image and how he became known to many people in America, and it's weird because if he was killed in 1987, many people wouldn't have ever know who he was, not only because 9/11 didn't happen but because around that time, he was just coming into the light and grasping power.
Describe the most interesting fact or event that you investigated.
I found it very interesting that Osama was a very wealthy man and that he helped fund a whole rebellion, it makes me wonder many different things. One being that if he never inherited the money from his father and his family never became well known, would he have ever been involved in the battle of Jaji and would he have ever been any different from any other Saudi Arabian man born around around that time.
How do the actions of individuals impact the historical record?
Actions of individuals impact history A LOT. Osama was one of the leaders in the War On Terror. If he had died in 1987, there would've been no war. Terrorism wouldn't have been as popular either. As I said before people link Osama Bin Laden to terrorism, all the time, but with him dead, terrorism wouldn't be that popular and wouldn't be used as much world-wide.
How do systemic changes impact the historical record?
Systemic changes also affect history a lot. Osama Bin Laden was a dictator and allowed people to believe in terrorism and that America was their enemy, and even though he has died, his ways live on. Many of those in the Arabin Nation and Muslim nation see Americans as their enemies.
How influential can one decision be in the historical landscape?
One decision can be very influential, Osama bin Laden proved that, he chose to fund the revolt and with that one choice he began a full out war. Without him funding the the soldiers and recruiting soldiers, there wouldn't have been a full out war, I believe that there would've been a couple of battles and fights here and there, but not a full blown war.
How could this project be improved?
I believe that I could've improved the project by researching the Battle Of Jajji a little more. I think I could've been able to find a better and more interesting way for Osama to be killed.
If you had it to do over, what would you change about your process for the project?
I would change the death of Osama, I would make it a lot more interesting and research it a lot more.