Howdy folks,

I was having a discussion with a Catholic conservative friend who brought up the early 20th century eugenics movement; his argument was that eugenics were, as a rule, supported by "progressives" and that it was "conservatives and Catholics" who made a stand and where later proven right. Is this view valid?

Since England and France were treaty bound to protect Poland and declared war on Germany when it invaded Poland in 1939, why didn't they declare war on the USSR despite its simultaneous invasion of Poland?

I'd imagine that the classical Arabic would be the same as Latin to the Catholic church if that is the case.

Also, when the Qur'an is "sung" in Arabic during periods of worship what are they really reading from and is it considered in bad taste to "sing" it in a different language?

I have heard of civilizations in modern day Nigeria and Ghana such as the Bini Empire, the Oyo Empire, Ashanti, etc., but I have never found much information about them, at least not to the extent of other great civilizations. Is this phenomenon due to Eurocentricism or is there really a lack of archaeological evidence of these various societies?

For my parents 50th anniversary I compiled some genealogical information into a book along with family stories and photos. While doing this research, I uncovered one line that had actually owned slaves (we had previously thought that we had no American slave owners). The family lived in Pitt County, N.C. and were of mixed English/French ancestry. I looked through a few years worth of census data and the data only shows 1 or 2 slaves at each census. How common would this have been? What would the relationship between a family and just 1 or 2 slaves have been like? Would the slave(s) have lived in separate quarters given that there was frequently only one slave? That seems like a big expense (maintaining a separate residence for one person). Are there any sources I could look at to find out more about my ancestors and their relationship with their slaves?

I should point out that this family voluntarily gave up slavery. My direct ancestors experienced a religious conversion in the late 1840s and gave up slavery though the source is unclear if they sold their slaves or freed them.

I know that some people viewed Sherman's methods as to extreme. Even though I thought what he did was tough I think he was right, and helped end the war quicker. Recently though some people told me that his army murdered, and raped their way through the south. Is their any truth, and merit behind those claims or is it just more revisionist history. Thank you.

One of my friends who identifies as a communist has been making claims about Cuba being at the forefront in medicine, sending doctors across the globe, sending soldiers to fight in south africa, having basically a eutopia independent of the U.S.

So what's really been happening there? What's notable in Cuban history since the U.S. broke ties?

Just watched the video up to the point where people moved him off the road.

Is there any particular reason that Pius XII didn't excommunicate or at the very least laicize the Catholic Priest and head of the Nazi client state the first Slovak Republic?

Chinese history is way outside what I'd normally be interested in, but I've been trying to find some info about the Dazexiang Uprising.

The problem is that outside of some very basic details, I can't find even a very basic overview of the uprising itself. Basically the only constant is that Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were leading a group of peasant soldiers to defend a city and were delayed by torrential rain; the draconian law mandated execution for anyone arriving late to a government job. Rather than be executed, the two men led the group of peasant soldiers in an uprising.

Outside of that, I can only find some snippets that may or may not be shrouded in legend or have been embellished over time. What exactly happened? Were these severe laws pretty standard, or was it something new? How did they come about? What do we know about the life of the two leaders of the uprising? Was there a great deal of peasant discontent before the uprising, or were the unlikely leaders unusually charismatic and able to raise an army very quickly on that basis? Do any records survive from the time?

This is intended to be in asked in a historical context. The development of clothing in regards to its professional appearance and concern for comfort. Double edit: Originally asked referencing Western culture, but thinking about it now, reading about Eastern culture would be cool too.

If so, where?

What was the general view of major American Christian denominations prior to that point?

EDIT: I ask this in reference to the belief by some modern fundamentalist sects that the Earth is 6,500 years old, and that this knowledge reflects a long-known Christian truth.

What sort of heavy troops would be seen in Islamic armies, if any, and what light troops would be seen in Latin armies, if any?