Today:
Welcome to this week's instalment of /r/AskHistorians' Sunday Digest (formerly the Day of Reflection). Nobody can read all the questions and answers that are posted here, so in this thread we invite you to share anything you'd like to highlight from the last week - an interesting discussion, an informative answer, an insightful question that was overlooked, or anything else.
I asked a question earlier this week about cat sacrifices in the US and Europe in the 18th century (ignore my mistaken mention of the 17th century in the title). Unfortunately I got no answers, but I'm hoping someone might be able to shed some light on this.
Well, I was on vacation all week (hence a day late) so wasn't paying too close attention, but a few responses did nevertheless stick out.
both /u/red_fife and /u/Lich-Su provided insightful responses to "During the period of French Colonization of Indochina, what effect did the respective styles of cooking have on the other?", with Lich-Su also answering "Why did the USA appose the Dutch in Indonesia but support the French in Vietnam?".
/u/shlin28 answered "What main factors led to Islam spreading rapidly after Mohammed's death?"
Alas, neither of my questions this week - about the role of satellite parties in Communist states and why the US Republicans consistently failed to win congressional majorities even in years their presidential candidates won in landslides - got any love.
I'd also like to draw attention to /u/sunagainstgold's answer to How much of a financial burden was the Jizya on non-Muslims?, which judging by the voting numbers many interested people may have missed.
/u/freedmenspatrol had a pretty detailed answer about the legal theory and historiography behind John Calhoun's support for the nullification doctrine, and the role each played in the lead-up to the civil war.